Gospel for the Wicked
by NightOwlCC
Summary: "I don't care if he is evil, as long as he's good to me." Glory, luxury and adoration go hand in hand with murder, psychopathy and world domination, as two apparently perfect families are rotting from the inside. AU rewrite for Death Note. WARNING: misogyny, cruelty, abuse, Electra complex, suicide, anorexia mentions. Various pairings, mostly LightxOC.
1. Prologue - 1 PM

**_Edit and summary:_**

 _I noticed only about 1/3 of you get to the first chapter. Before you start reading, let me say that I know the prologue sucks. But heads up - I promise you it gets better. My characters aren't sue-ish (or at least nobody complained they are... I hope they're not) and yes, this does involve canon characters. In this story I will try my best to make all characters as realistic as possible and blur the lines a little bit between the Death Note fictional universe and the real world. Here's the summary:_

 _It's a slowly progressing romance between Light and an OC that begins about 2 years before Light becomes Kira. Light has some mental problems with a voice in his head (yes, that's right, he's a little bit nuts before he gets the notebook) and Misa is just starting her career in fashion and publicity. No, I'm not going to write Misa as the stereotype stupid girl P!nk sings about. There will be a lot of power struggles, some characters will die, others will try to get revenge. Light's dad will become involved in some conflicts, as well as Rod Ross (no Mello and Matt yet, perhaps in part 4). Also, most of the OCs are originally inspired by the Death Note characters, though they will become more original._

 _The only purpose of this prologue is to show you the characters so you get an idea of how they look and guess a few personality traits. I give clues before anything major happens, so just... skim the prologue and jump onto the first chapter, I guess? I could have jumped straight into the middle of the action, but would have left too many unanswered questions. Introducing five original characters out of the blue? I don't know how many of you would have liked that instead. So instead, please enjoy the read and I'm looking forward to hear from you soon._

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 _Prologue - 1 PM_

* * *

 _One of the busiest cities in the world is slowly waking up. It's a beautiful morning in early spring and the sun is about to rise. Soon, cars will be blocking the streets, people will be rushing on the sidewalks, and the general murmur will cover the sound of hell's bells._

* * *

A flight from Milan, Italy landed in Tokyo, Japan. The time was 1 pm. The sun was shining in a beautiful early spring day. Cherry trees were just about to bloom. The sky was clear. The scent of freshly grounded coffee, newly printed books and latex filled the air. A few steps away, chocolate and fresh-baked bread.

A group of four had just arrived to their new home. The youngest and definitely the center of everyone's attention was a fourteen-year-old teenager rocking a pair of loosely laced boots, ripped, washed-out skinny jeans, a loose, white, sleeveless T-shirt and a black leather jacket carelessly thrown over her shoulders. Her left wrist was dressed in several bracelets of black leather with silver beads and charms. A soft clinking of bells followed her every move. The upper sections of her hair were thrown into a messy half-bun, leaving a few bangs to frame her round sunglasses. Her skinny figure was starting to show signs of normal development, especially around the chest.

The father walked a step behind her. He was dominating the group with his tall stature and well-built body. Pitch black hair was tied back into a sleek ponytail. His beard has been recently shaved. His white shirt was contrasting with a dark brown suit jacket and black dress pants. Shiny shoes reflected the sunlight. Black eyes stayed on his daughter at all times. As soon as he stopped, his wife and daughter turned to see why.

The woman was considerably younger and looked rather like the girl's sister. Her summery platforms made her stand a few centimeters taller than her partner. White flares were matched with a flowery blouse in warm pastels. A white blazer with a single golden detail was left unbuttoned. On her right wrist, a golden watch was ticking quietly between diamonds. Her left ring and middle finger were decorated with gold and white diamonds. Fake nails brushed back bleached locks from her face. Blonde hair covered a hint of auburn roots. Tall cheekbones were highlighted and contoured, thin lips pursed in impatience. Cold green eyes stopped on the figure of the other. After a moment, she sighed and continued walking.

A slender man in his seventies took the luggage of the family. His white hair still kept a hint of chestnut, his face was small and edgy and his nose resembled a hawk's beak. A gray mustache hid thin lips rolled towards the inside of his mouth. His chin was small and pointy. His shoulders tended to lean forward. The black suit he wore contrasted with his white shirt, hair, and skin. A black tie seemed to be strangling his thin neck.

Following her mother, the teenager began walking towards the car. A man in his thirties opened the door for the two females while the leader was following close behind. The butler was helped by the driver to put the luggage in the back of the car.

"Heavens, this is boring..." the woman complained. She rolled her eyes.

"Tiring, rather. Japan looks very different from home." her daughter replied. Since they had left the airport, her eyes had been glued to the car's window. She observed the people, the streets, what they were wearing and how they behaved - as much as it was possible from a fast drive through Tokyo.

"Exactly," she approved. "Driver? How long?" The woman had an air of superiority.

"Ten minutes, signora. Fifteen at most." The man was used to this kind of behavior. He had been paid to fly to Tokyo a week early. For the past two years, he had been the leader's right hand in everything related to family.

"Ah, good!" she exclaimed.

The father and the daughter had fallen silent. Both of them seemed lost in thought. He was born to a Chinese prostitute and abandoned. His adoptive family had raised him as their only child for twenty years. Only days before his 20th birthday, a woman had come to their door holding a newborn baby and claiming it belonged to his father. Enraged, he took a knife and stabbed his adoptive father to death. After that, he had disappeared. Years later, he had taken the new name of Amadeo "the love of God", the only one who he could trust to keep his darkest secret.

Soon, the car stopped in front of a penthouse. As usual, the driver opened the door and helped the woman out. The girl refused him by raising her hand. Her mother was checking her puffy eyes and spoiled makeup in a pocket-size mirror.

"This is unimportant, Anastasia." her husband sighed.

"Oh, darling, but I want to look good for you~" she purred. The woman leaned with both of her hands on his shoulder. Her partner paid no attention.

The butler, helped by the driver out of respect, was going forward to inspect the apartment and leave the luggage.

"Rosa, my dear, why don't you go choose your room and look around?" The mother tried to shoo away the girl.

"Yes, fine. I've told you, say what you mean straightly. Stop beating around the bush." Her answer was sharp, but not hurtful. "Padre?" Her tone had changed slightly. The parent could sense the respect she had for him without noticing any sort of weakness or indecision.

"Caterina?" he asked patiently. It was rare for the girl to address him directly in front of Anastasia.

"Please dine with me this week. I know your schedule is tight, but I ask of you to make time for me one evening."

"Very well."

Caterina was the only person who could address him fearlessly. She had no reason to hesitate in stating her requests. Not even the man's wife dared ask something of him on that confident tone.

Anastasia was jealous, but could very well understand this fight had been lost from the beginning. The only possible relationship between a seventeen-year-old rebel sneaking out the bedroom window and a forty-year-old nightclub owner could be a financial one where she sold her body for money, clothes, drinks, and cigarettes. The man was of the lonely and broken variety, from what Anastasia remembered. He was calm and docile as long as he was in control and sober. When drunk though, he turned into a completely different person. In fact, there was a special interdiction order for alcohol of any kind wherever they went, regardless of the time they were going to spend there.

The bleached-blonde followed a step behind as the man imposed his domination over her. For fourteen years he had not tasted a single drop of alcohol. He had quit smoking and invested all of his savings into some profitable business of which Anastasia knew too little and Caterina was completely uninterested.

* * *

 ** _Author's Note:_**

 _This is my second fan fiction story, still in need for a beta reader. Yes, I am shamelessly advertising this here. This story is being corrected by **Eat4Fun**. There had been two other attempts, but because of some difficulties, I have turned to the beta Eat4Fun. _

_Since my Yu Yu Hakusho "Mandala" is written in first person with frequent changes of perspective, I am going to try writing in third person for this one. Two of the original characters are inspired by two very popular characters of Death Note (which some of you probably guessed by now), but don't worry. Starting with the next chapter, canon characters are going to show as well. The purpose of this prologue was to introduce you, the reader, to my four characters which will play more or less important roles in the story._

 _If you paid attention, you probably noticed Caterina is fourteen. The prologue is set roughly two years before the beginning of the series, when Light will find the Death Note. Also, expect some characters to be spared and others to be damned._

 _Please follow, favorite, review and/or PM me. All critiques and suggestions are welcome and will be considered._

 ** _NightOwl_**

* * *

 ** _Disclaimers:_**

 _I do not own Death Note art or plotline. What I do own are my OCs and interpretation of the Death Note characters._

 _I do not own the cover picture. I have only edited it. The original belongs to **alicexz** on DeviantArt._


	2. I - Accents

_I - Accents_

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Whenever possible, which meant most of the time, her father took care that their apartment had three bedrooms. Caterina was not close to her mother and only saw her around the house by accident or when one of the two was sick. Also, from time to time, they went to private parties and dined with important people Caterina never really knew. Her father had tried to explain a few things to her, but she clearly stated that the matter did not interest her. Her father simply assumed she was still too young. His patience seemed infinite with her.

That morning, as usual, Caterina ordered breakfast in her room and refused to keep her mother company. She was not 'in the mood' for her mother's cheap talk about celebrities, fashion scandals, or shopping. The girl preferred action over words and was one of the worst clients one could ever see in their nightmares.

After a good night's sleep and a refreshing shower, the girl announced to her mother that she was going out. She wanted to see the people and the shops. Caterina made quite a big deal of fitting into the general picture, while also showing her superior sense of fashion.

"Rosa...?" her mother attempted. "Rosa, please. I wanted Vincent to go with me today. Perhaps we could go together around town?"

"I'm sorry, my mind is still rather tired. I would like to take some time on my own."

The more she grew, the more her precious Rosa reminded Anastasia of her husband... or partner, or financial supporter, because that's how she saw him. They were indeed married for fourteen years, but the woman felt like a bother most of the time. In her own way, she had matured enough to understand the man had most likely never cared for her on a romantic level. It was one reason she had been trying to keep her body young, as a last attempt to fool herself he might have felt anything for her, even if it was just sexual attraction. She wanted to be more than the woman walking beside him on an airport or sitting on his left side at parties.

With a sigh, the woman returned to her bedroom and laid on the king sized bed that she shared with the cool air of the room. She had done this so many times, crying was no longer of use. Sometimes she wondered if she had any tears left. With the passing of time, she found herself terrified to come to the same conclusion more and more often: she was dead to them. Anastasia had died in the eyes of the Dragon the second she gave birth.

Without any other explanations, the teenager put on her mirrored sunglasses and her black backpack. She was already dressed in a dark green blouse and black jeans, paired with a different set of bracelets and black sandals. Anastasia has been trying anything, including buying those silver necklaces with different charms, either on a simple chain or a black string of leather, but it seemed Caterina preferred those she bought herself. This time she had chosen a minimalist inverted triangle with a single circle in the middle fitting perfectly in the v shape of the collar.

For the next four hours, poor old Vincent with his sharp eyes and severe look has been following Caterina from one shop to another. He didn't have to carry more than two light bags though. Caterina was very picky - and very straightforward. Whenever a shop assistant offered to help, she quickly shooed them away with a brutally cold "It's ugly", "It's horrible", "I wouldn't wear that if you paid me," to the point she was driving the shop assistants insane.

"Signorina, may I suggest you take a break for lunch?"

Caterina had started to suspect her butler's respect was fake a little while back, but she had no proof to support her accusations. Of course, a word would have been enough for her father to have gotten rid of him, but according to his values, it was not moral to accuse someone without evidence.

"Yes, I believe we should..." she mumbled after a moment. For whatever reason, she felt strange... as if followed by a very insistent pair of eyes. "Vincent. We will return to the apartment for lunch." All of a sudden, she turned on her heels and almost bumped into another teenager. He seemed roughly the same age, though in more formal attire. He was wearing a brown suit and a white shirt. "Oh-"

"Signorina, is everything alright?" Vincent tried, but both ignored him.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean that. I hope you are not hurt...?" he asked with a wide and genuine smile. He was sure these two were tourists, so he addressed the girl in English.

"Should I call the guards, signorina?" the butler continued.

Caterina straightened her back and raised her hand. The meant that Vincent should stop worrying pointlessly and shut up.

"I am alright. I apologize, I... wasn't looking." She made a gesture with her hand as if shooing away some insect bugging her and quickly shook her head with a smile. Caterina looked at him well. There was something familiar about him - not his face, but perhaps his posture. He had something, some detail she couldn't name that reminded her of someone. She instantly noticed his accent, though his English was good.

"I apologize, are you tourists?" The teenager liked to make sure of his assumptions. 'Perhaps' was not a word he frequently used. Also, he had listened to the way the other two were speaking - fast, fluid, almost singing the words together. Speed in speech was characteristic to the five Latin languages, while the fluidity and melodic sound of it narrowed it down to one. They were most likely Italian.

"Not exactly." Much to the butler's displeasure, Caterina seemed to be accepting the company of this random Japanese stranger. The girl lifted her sunglasses on the top of her head. Green eyes stared into brown ones. With an Italian mother and a Chinese-blooded father, her face was at least... interesting. She had the tall cheekbones and thin, straight nose of her mother, but the small forehead and thick brows of her father. Although not as doe-like as her mother's, her eyes were rather wide for an Asian and made her look a bit exotic in the sea of small black eyes. "I guess it's obvious we're not Japanese, isn't it?"

"It was actually the accent." he laughed lightly as the girl chuckled. The teenager noticed her traits immediately and tried to remember the racial stereotypes of the world. Again, he thought of Italy. All the while, Vincent was frowning in impatience. How long was Caterina going to keep allowing her time to a stranger? "So you are not here to visit, then?"

"No. Rather, my father came here with business, so we are most probably going to stay here for at least a year."

Vincent was growing even tenser by the second. His bushy white brows frowned over his nose. Was it safe to give away this kind of information? Wouldn't it have been better to just play along and pretend they were tourists separated from the group?

"I see... Will you be starting school here in Tokyo this fall?"

"Most likely, yes. Hey, um, change of subject. Do you know any good restaurant around here?"

"But, signorina, your mother will be worried-"

"You can leave her a message or call her for me. She'll know not to wait for me." After that, the butler was faced with the hand once more.

The Japanese noticed some indifference when the elder man mentioned her mother. Was she also in Japan? Were her parents still together? She didn't seem so cold when she mentioned her father.

Sighing and frowning, he obeyed. In the meantime, the teenagers, though apparently very different, seemed to be getting along. Her sharpness seemed to be turning a bit dull as she was slowly letting her guard down. Vincent was surprised to hear her laugh as they talked unimportant nothings, like Japanese-Italian stereotypes, food, or pop culture out of which the old man could barely understand anything.

"Maybe I'm being indecent, and I apologize in advance, but is he your grandfather?"

"Stop apologizing every other word." she laughed. "I know it's polite and all, but not where I'm from. It's fine, really."

"I'll try, then." he chuckled.

"He's my butler." After that, she whispered something quickly under her breath which made the both of them laugh. Vincent could not make out any word from the noises he had managed to hear.

"You have a butler! I was convinced that job had disappeared." replied the young man who still needed to give his name. It seemed he could easily avoid whatever was whispered before.

"Not if you can afford it. So, are you from Tokyo?"

"Yes. I was born here and I'm still here, though I aim a little higher."

"Right. I've lived in Milan before, though I liked Florence better. Have you ever traveled abroad?" The teenager shook his head. "It's the only thing that gets me excited anymore. The world is so varied and so beautiful in the strangest ways, it never fails to amaze me. Some people ruin it... But aside from that, traveling is my favorite sport."

"Ruin it?"

"Yes. You know, when you're on vacation and someone steals your cards, or when you're sight-seeing and there are vandals destroying statues or historical buildings. Or when your plane is about to take off and someone gives an alert there might be a terrorist on board. That's scary."

"Has it happened to you?"

"Once. I was ten, but I remember it well."

"I don't doubt it. It's not something you can easily forget..."

"Yea... But enough of sad and scary memories!" she laughed as they entered a Japanese restaurant. "How about you explain the menu for me a little bit? After that, maybe you'll show me around, like you said."

With some smiles and chuckles, they translated the menu into English and ordered. All the while, Vincent has been eyeing the other teenager suspiciously. He stepped out of the restaurant for a few minutes to inform the lady of the house of the recent change of plans. She seemed to be taking it lightly, but as soon as she hang up, the mother began to cry. Her dear Rosa preferred the company of a stranger over that of her own mother.

* * *

 ** _Author's Note:_**

 _The story is currently being corrected by the beta **Eat4Fun**. _

_Follow, favorite, review and/or PM me. All critiques and suggestions are welcomed and will be considered._


	3. II - Rag Doll

_II – Rag Doll_

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After a few quick phone calls, the man returned to the apartment. He was surprised to only find Anastasia wiping her eyes of makeup. She was smiling brightly, even if her face had been stained by tears. He could not tell if it was genuine or as fake as her nails. The man wasn't very interested in reading her either.

"Giuliano, you're home early."

"Yes... Is Caterina here?" He had been the one to choose this name for her.

"No. She left in the morning with Vincent and announced she will be eating somewhere in town."

There were a few rules the man had never voiced, but Anastasia had learned. Among these, never ask unnecessary questions, always offer all the information she had on a subject and always make sure Rosa was not alone whenever she went out.

Giuliano sat on the couch and threw his arms over the back. He sighed.

"Should I bring you anything, dear? Or should I order something-"

"No... Don't bother."

Trying hard not to feel his lack of affection, the mother moved to sit on an armchair to his left. She curled her legs beside her and put her hands on her lap. The seat to his right was always reserved to Rosa.

"You're bothered by something. Let's hear."

Although surprised, Anastasia couldn't deny the accuracy of his observation.

"Yes, that's true... My love, I am worried. Why are we so suddenly moving here, to a foreign country we've never even visited before? I know you've mentioned business for a reason, but I can't seem to figure it out. Are there some problems...?"

The woman knew that directly asking what his business was could be a very bad idea. On the other hand, she had a very bad feeling about his sudden decision of moving to Japan. For a few moments, her husband seemed deep in thought.

"I have caught rumors of employees being corrupted. I hate losing money pointlessly, you already know that. I am here to supervise the Asian wing of the company."

He seemed to be in a good mood, so the woman continued.

"It's such a strange country... I mean, different. It's the first time we see Asia, Rosa and I..."

Because the man was from an adoptive family and he never really told her about his past, Anastasia was trying to avoid mentioning the continent most of the time. Though since they were in Japan, she figured it could be a good idea to carefully talk him into allowing himself a short vacation. Whatever his company was, it was eating up most of his time. Therefore, whenever he had a day partially free, he would choose to relax at home or sleep.

"We are not tourists, Anastasia."

"I am sorry. I just thought-"

"You don't think. Go wash your face."

With her head bowed, the woman went to the bathroom. In truth, her makeup was so messy it made her look like a raccoon. She wiped the paint off and washed her face. Why bother covering her dark circles and few acne scars when he didn't care to look at her more than ten seconds a day?

His phone rang.

"Yes." her husband answered. "The finest quality, I expect... Good. What did the examiner say?" After a short pause, Anastasia could imagine him grinning. "As expected. Be ready to ship it tomorrow. Make sure to be there on time."

He hung up. Anastasia tried to sneak from behind the corner of the hallway to her bedroom, only to be caught from around the neck by his strong hand. She froze. Like a hare blinded by a car's powerful lights, she was waiting in fear for the man's reaction.

"Were you listening...?" he asked in a deep voice by her ear, sending cold chills of fear down her spine.

"N-no-"

"Don't _lie_ to me!" he yelled. The man pressed her against the wall. "I will rip out your tongue next time you dare lie. Does my business interest you?! _Does it_?!" he screamed through gritted teeth.

The woman stood still and silent, keeping her eyes closed. She trembled in his hand. Surprise washed over her when his grip loosened and he let her slide to the floor at his feet.

"I am keeping this from you to protect you. Because this way, I can protect Caterina. Stop trying to pretend you have a brain! Shut up, smile, and enjoy your little magazine. That should be your worry, not what I am doing. It's what you've done all your life. Cover your face in paint, pretend you're still twenty and bathe in your superficial world. You know nothing but flashlights and plastic. You wanted to be a doll? Dolls have no brain. Dolls have no opinions or thoughts."

When she opened her eyes, he had his back turned.

"Do not push my hand again." he mumbled.

As he gradually became calmer, she was starting to remember every time he had thrown her across the room like a rag doll. She remembered every angry hit that lent on her body. She remembered every time he had broken the furniture in his office, on the top floor of the club, either with his fists or with her body. Yet, he visited her in the hospital. When her family couldn't afford it, he paid for her treatment.

What had just happened was her fault. It was what she deserved. No, it was less than what she deserved and the first time in fourteen years, he punished her. In a way, it seemed he was almost sorry for her.

"Get up." he addressed her again, though he didn't turn to face her. "Your phone is ringing."

He didn't sound angry anymore. For a moment, Anastasia forgot about the abuse and thought of how much she would have liked to hear him using that tone every day. He wasn't cold anymore...

Confused, but smiling, she stood up. Vincent had called and he sounded rather worried.

 _'Signora? Please pardon my call. I know you and the master have asked that I notify you immediately if the girl is in trouble. I have reasons to believe trouble will be on its way soon.'_

The Dragon could hear Vincent's voice at the other end of the line, though he could not understand the words. "What is it?" he questioned his pale wife.

"Rosa... My Rosa! What happened? Vincent, you must tell us everything!" Her fingers tapped the button marked 'speaker'.

 _'I have used the device given, master, and I found out that the young man your daughter has met only an hour ago is the elder son of the Police Chief Yagami Soichiro.'_

The man frowned. The Police must never be allowed anywhere near his family or his life - it would have been too risky.

 _'Master...?'_

"How is my daughter involved with the police chief's son?"

 _'They have met accidentally on the street, master. We are now at a Japanese restaurant. They have been talking for the past hour about cultural differences, literature, music, and I believe, some pop culture. I apologize, sir, I could not understand some of what they were saying.'_

* * *

 ** _Author's_** ** _Notes:_**

 _Story proofread by the beta **Eat4Fun.**_

 _Weekly updates from now on for Gospel! Yay!_

 _Also, don't forget to check out my profile for news and announcements. Follow, favorite, **review** or PM me, please! All suggestions and critiques are welcomed and will be considered! _

_PS. A fanfiction story written in collaboration with a friend had been released on a joined account. For all Shaman King fans, please go and check it out!_


	4. III - Uncomfortable

_III - Uncomfortable_

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"I do not want my daughter anywhere near the police!" The man growled between gritted teeth.

"But darling, what could possibly happen? They have no way of knowing who Rosa is."

The Dragon pushed the woman off from his shoulder and towards the couch. Their butler, who was currently assigned to look after Caterina, had given him some horrible news. The man was pacing the room.

"They won't take long to find out..." Tears filled her eyes, but she was holding back with all her might. "I can't afford that."

* * *

At the restaurant, three hours had passed. Caterina had a general idea of Light, but not enough to know who he really was. On the other hand, Light was tempted to say he knew the girl, even if he had only heard unimportant memories and dates lacking in names and substance. As a first impression, they seemed to have two things in common - intelligence and boredom.

Because of these attributes, the two managed to relax and let loose for a short while. However, there were still important details left uncovered.

"Can we go now, signorina? Your Padre must be very worried by now." The old man insisted.

"Yes, we can." She replied shortly. "Wait for me outside. Call the driver if you get bored."

Vincent hid his anger with grace and made his way out of the restaurant. He considered the young lady of the house to be much too disrespectful and spoiled. More often than not, he felt humiliated to be spoken to in such way. The old man would have slapped her countless times for the public humiliation, but he knew such action would bring him not only a complete failure on a professional level, but also a possible death sentence.

"Excuse me for my reaction," Light began with an amused smile, "but it is quite rare to see someone submissive to such..."

"Humiliation?" she said the word he seemed to be avoiding. "Most will, for the right price."

"I see. I have figured your financial situation is much better than that of the majority. May I ask about your family?" Of course, he did realize the question was a great risk -he had heard of the Mafia members and how they could order an execution for as much as the victim having witnessed something by accident- but he was willing to take it. By that time, he had noticed the girl seemed to be enjoying his company, so he decided to set his bet on that.

"Yes, you may." she chuckled. "However, I may not answer."

"Ah, I understand. You don't trust me with such personal information yet... Is that it?"

"Yes, more or less. It all comes down to two things - money and trust. Either of these could take you far... but you have not enough of either at the moment."

"At the moment." Light repeated her words exactly. "But perhaps in the near future..."

He was interrupted by the butler returning to their table.

"Is he here?" Caterina shortly addressed the old man, who simply nodded and bowed.

"Caterina...!" the young man began, but was left wordless for a short moment. Should he ask if she wanted to see him again? Should he ask for her number? Was any of these necessary?

"Yes...?" She stood up and stopped, not having turned her back on him yet.

"I hope to see you again soon." he managed to say in a calm voice.

"Perhaps." she replied with a smile before walking out with the white-haired man.

In the car, Vincent took the passenger seat. Caterina was back to her serious self, sitting quietly in the back. The driver seemed to be the only one having a good day. He was quietly humming to a song on the radio and tapping the rhythm. When he noticed Caterina putting on her earphones, he turned his attention to the butler.

"What happened, old man?" he asked, sounding quite amused.

"Hmph! It does not interest you. Now keep your eyes on the road."

"I could, sure. But I could very well crash into a wall, don't you think? The daughter might get out alive since she's in the back, but we won't."

"You better not!"

"Then answer me." the driver insisted on a slightly amused tone, as if they were having the most casual conversation.

"You would never crash this car. The Dragon would kill you."

"Oh, don't worry. I can kill us both before he does. We'll take your snobbery and my curiosity to the graves."

"He will kill your family. You've heard of him, haven't you? Mindless fool! Slow down immediately!"

As the driver was speeding down the road, the old man began to panic.

"I'm an orphan. Is your memory failing already? My, that must be terrifying! We both know the boss doesn't like inefficient people."

"Shut up..." He growled. "What happened today is none of your concern."

"Ah, but I think it might be!"

"If the Dragon finds out we had this conversation..."

"No worries! She has her earphones on and there's no one else around. Convenient, right?"

"Fine. She spoke to Yagami's son, that's it." The old man was finally giving in.

"Yagami? And this is...?" The driver began as he parked the car.

"That's already more than you should know. Stop the engine and let me off."

"You? What about her?" he asked with a light chuckle.

"I don't care about that spoiled brat. Just let me off before you kill us both!"

"You really are a pain, huh...?"

The old man rolled his eyes. Once the engine had been stopped, the doors unlocked automatically and the driver went to open the door for the girl. He bowed down to her as a pretext to listen closely... There was no buzzing coming from the girl's earphones. He smiled.

As Caterina noticed this, he began to wonder if her suspicion of Vincent was shared by the driver. In that case, it would have been much easier to get rid of the old vermin. Their eyes met for a second, before Caterina allowed the butler to escort her to the apartment's door. She saw satisfaction on the driver's face.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Story proofread by the beta **Eat4Fun**. _

_Check my profile for news and announcements! Follow, favorite, **review** , or PM me. All suggestions and critiques are welcomed and will be considered!_


	5. IV – Tea Party

_IV – Tea Party_

* * *

A week had passed since the family had moved to Japan. Giuliano had fired almost half of the bank's employees, from supervisors to guards or janitors. A few cases had been reported all over the country of houses or blocks bursting into flames with people inside, both during the day and the night. Some of the victims that had been transported to the hospital had mysteriously suffered grave complications overnight.

The police were gathering information from other countries where such incidents had happened before, but it seemed the phenomenon had appeared and disappeared by itself. Nobody could trace it to either a man or a group of men, but everybody suspected these had been ordered executions. Almost twenty bloodlines had died in less than a week, the number of deaths rising constantly.

Caterina kept going out, mostly without her father's knowledge. The driver was the only one who knew when she left the hotel, but not even he could be sure where she went or why. Soon enough, the girl had Light's number and he had hers. She knew his father was working for the police, that he had a younger sister and that his parents were still together. They kept discussing cultural differences, past experiences, and the news. Light seemed particularly interested in the series of inexplicable deaths and the fires bursting all over Japan and he suspected that Caterina knew something more than the general public, but he couldn't make her admit anything.

Anastasia was the only one making some favorable progress. She was working on a new fashion line, taking the project very seriously – it was her only distraction from a husband who had never loved her and a daughter who had never recognized her as a mother. Day and night, the blonde kept sketching, imagining, and trying different combinations of patterns, colors and textures. She had a mannequin in her room which she used to put together the pieces of her new collection.

On her first Friday in town, she had a young model coming to see her. Giuliano had agreed to this almost mindlessly, she remembered. He was probably too busy to care about a depressive wife, so he had simply mumbled a positive answer before going back to discussing only he knew what.

Vincent knocked on the door of the lady's door.

"Yes, Vincent?" she asked. The butler was the only one who could bother her. Caterina was somewhere in town and her husband was probably not going to be there for the day.

"Signora, signorina Amane is here." He said from the doorway.

"Oh, wonderful! I will be there in a minute."

The man closed the door and went into the living room to announce the other blonde.

"If you could please wait for a minute. Signora Amadeo will be here in a moment."

"Great!" The girl giggled as her small pigtails jumped up and down on the sides of her head.

"Would you like anything in the mean time?"

"Uhm…" The girl looked up at her own reflection on the mirrored ceiling and pointed a long index finger on her chin. "Some tea would be great, or juice, but please make sure it's sugar-free! Misa-Misa doesn't want to get fat."

"Of course, signorina."

The old man bowed his head, slightly amused by the girl. The fact that she spoke in third person was enough for the butler to label her as dumb.

In another moment or two, Anastasia walked into the large living room in a maxi dress in pastel pinks and yellows, better fit for a day at the beach rather than talking business. She smiled widely as her guest stood up and they kissed one another's cheeks without really touching skin.

"My, you are even more charming in person, my dear!" The woman said before taking a seat on the couch.

Misa chuckled a vain 'Thank you' before taking her seat on the armchair that was usually reserved for Caterina. She crossed her legs, exposed in all their teenage glory by a very short black and red skirt with golden skulls for buttons and knee high socks. She had a black button-up shirt which would have been strangely decent for her if it wasn't half transparent.

"How are you today?" The woman began the conversation as Vincent set the tea on the small glass table between them and poured two cups, one for his mistress and one for her guest.

"Misa is doing well, thank you. Misa is excited!" She giggled.

"Oh, that's great! Because I can't wait to start working with you!"

"Really?"

Anastasia nodded as Misa clapped her hands together.

"I can show you some sketches of my new fashion collection, if you'd like."

"Sure!"

"But first, I will need to talk a few things with you. You see, Misa, I will need you to sign a contract. I will also need your parents to sign an agreement, both of them. I hope it's not a problem, is it?"

The girl shook her head. "Not at all! Mother and Father will be glad! It's Misa's first job for a magazine!"

"Really?" Anastasia smiled brightly. "Don't worry about it, then! You will learn everything you need to know with time. You're just so adorable, I think everyone will be glad to help you."

"Thank you~!" She half squealed, half sang.

Just then, the front door opened then closed with a click.

"I'm home…!" Came Caterina's bored voice as she announced her presence. She left her shoes in the hall before stepping inside.

"Rosa, my dear, we are over here! Please come say hi to our guest." Her mother called.

Out of curiosity, the girl stepped into the room and her eyes stopped on Misa.

"Oh, I didn't know you invited a _loli_."

Her voice was dripping with sarcasm and disrespect, but neither of the blondes seemed to notice.

"Misa loves the dark Lolita fashion!" She gladly claimed about herself.

"Hm, yeah, I noticed…" Caterina mentioned. "Also, that's my seat."

"Rosa, please be nice to our-" Her mother tried to intervene.

"Underage prostitute?" The auburn-haired girl asked ironically.

Misa gasped. "Me?! Misa does no such thing!"

"But you look like one. Now get your ass off my seat."

"Rosa! You could at least try to be nice to her since you will be working together."

"What?!" Both girls asked at once, Caterina feeling insulted and Misa scared.

"Me?! Working with a retarded Lolita who talks in third person? Oh, _hell no_."

"You take that _back_!" Misa yelled while jumping to her feet.

"Do you even know what 'Lolita' means?" Caterina continued. "If you're going to sport a certain look, know the message you're sending."

"Misa will dress in whatever fashion Misa wants!"

"Oh, please! Sex shops don't sell fashion, sweetheart."

Anastasia stood up and dragged her daughter outside the room by her hand. Misa remained alone, huffing and puffing, pouting like a five-years-old.

"Rosa, you are _embarrassing_ me!" Her mother complained as her daughter brushed her hand off.

"You will let go of me this instant. Does Padre know who your new model is? Does he know the Amadeo name will be associated with a Lolita?"

The blonde turned pale at the mention of her husband. "He agreed to this…"

"Really? Or did he agree to have a model as a guest to entertain you?"

Anastasia bit her lip like a teenager caught sneaking out the back door. Caterina stood straight, claiming her superior statute with a cold stare and pretending to be waiting for an answer both of them knew was not going to come.

"Just because you were one, doesn't mean the world needs to know about it."

Anastasia tried to slap her daughter, but her hand had been stopped by that of Caterina. The mother had tears in her eyes and her lower lip was trembling.

"Don't think math is too much for me. You were seventeen when you gave birth. Fifteen years ago, that was unacceptable."

"You have no right to judge me! I am your mother!"

"I never said you weren't, it's why I have every right to judge you. Do whatever you want, but I will not have my image stained by you or any of your skimpy friends. I aim for the top and I will not have you dragging me down."

Anastasia gasped in shock, feeling her heart break even more as her own daughter was calling her out for her past mistakes.

"Even if you don't agree to my past, I had given you a better life this way! How many girls your age have half of what you do?! You could at least be grateful for that!"

"Oh, I am… I am grateful to Padre for giving me everything I deserve as his one and only heir. All I'm saying is that I don't want his name stained by a loli."

"You are in no position of giving me any kind of permission."

"…Right. We'll see about that."

Caterina turned on her heels as her mother tried her hardest to keep from crying. What was so wrong in having a Lolita model? The world of fashion was one of beauty, not morals… right? And besides, Misa was cute. She couldn't possibly be a Lolita in anything else but fashion.

Counting her breaths to keep calm and blinking away a few tears, Anastasia returned to Misa, who had been waiting there for the past five minutes or more.

"I apologize, my dear. I'm afraid my daughter can be a little… acidic."

"It's alright… Misa won't have to work with her, right?"

"…No, you won't." The woman answered after a moment of thought. "Now, where were we…?"

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _This story is being corrected and proofread by **Eat4Fun**. _

_Check my profile for news and announcements! Follow, favorite, **review** , or PM me. All suggestions and critiques are welcomed and will be considered!_


	6. V – Fireworks

_V – Fireworks_

* * *

 **WARNING**

Contains violence, torture, and murder. May not be suitable for younger readers.

This chapter can be skipped without major plot holes (read the Author's Notes at the end).

* * *

In one of the many storehouses, a man was tied to a metal pole supporting the ceiling. His breathing was loud and painful, his left arm bent at an unnatural angle and swollen. He was shirtless, covered in bruises and cuts, but none serious enough to threaten his life. His hands were turning a dark shade of purple because of the thin metal cords tied too tight for his blood to flow. He was covered in sweat, blood, and his own spit. One of his eyes was dark and his lips and chin were covered in dried blood. The man, in his late forties and with a well-built body, was enjoying a break from the torture as his head was spinning around the border of consciousness.

Outside, a black car stopped and the Dragon stepped out. He was his own driver this time, not willing to risk having someone else find out about this.

"Master."

A Chinese man, standing rather tall for an Asian, with his hair braided behind him and dressed in black from his neck to his heels bowed down in front of the leader. His gloves were torn around the knuckles and his hands were covered in blood, though it was not his.

"Any progress?" the Dragon asked as he approached the storehouse.

"None, master."

"Is he alive?"

"Yes, master."

The Dragon entered the building and two guards bowed as well. They were covered from head to toe, only their eyes being visible. One guard had small black eyes, the other had large, baby blue eyes.

The latter asked for permission to speak first.

"Master."

"Talk."

"The hostage had begged for death. He had refused water. No information had been revealed."

The man in charge to torture the hostage was following two steps behind the Dragon as he slowly stepped closer. Indeed, his employee looked pathetic.

"Wake him," came the order as the torturer hurried to do so. He splashed the half-dead hostage with a bucket of cold water, causing him to wake gasping and trembling.

The hostage looked at the new man standing in front of him with the one eye he could open and tried to recognize the person through the blur.

"Who paid you?" the Dragon asked, but the hostage remained silent.

The Dragon took out his gun and shot the hostage in his feet, aiming each toe one by one as the victim screamed in agony.

"I will ask you again… Who paid you?"

"…I don't know… what are you… talking about…" the other mumbled between gasps.

"I am talking about the code of one of the safes, the one that had been emptied last month."

The other shook his head once again. He had been a new employee, appointed to guard one of the three largest safes of the bank in Tokyo owned by the Dragon. Less than two weeks after him being hired, the money, gold, diamonds, jewelry and artworks in the safe had mysteriously disappeared, without the alarm being set off.

"You should know I hate vermin."

The Dragon threw the bottle of sake from which the torturer had been drinking. It crushed against the hostage's legs, the broken shards cutting into his flesh as the alcoholic drink burned his wounds.

"Should I bring the gasoline, master?" The torturer offered as the victim froze in terror.

"Yes. Wait for my command." The Dragon answered calmly.

The guards looked at each other. The blue-eyed one looked rather confused and perhaps a little scared as well, his colleague couldn't be sure. It was the first time the blue-eyed had been assigned to guard a hostage while he was being tortured. He hadn't enjoyed it at all and his newest colleague, whose identity he had yet to learn, could tell he was not the best fit for this kind of job. He felt pity.

The Dragon sighed. "Why are you doing this?" He approached the terrified hostage and clasped his face with one gloved hand. "You are going to die, anyway. You could at least spare me the effort of torturing you."

The man's jaws began to hurt more and more as the Dragon applied even more force. He felt the blood coming from where some of his teeth had been, before the torturer had punched them out.

"Here are your options… One, you start talking and you earn yourself the death you've been begging for… or two, I'll set you on fire."

"…Kill… Kill me…"

The Dragon slammed the victim's head against the metal pole behind him, then stepped back. The torturer poured gasoline all over the man's pants and feet, leaving a puddle around him.

Just then, the Dragon's phone began to ring. He checked the number and smirked.

"Think about it." He warned the hostage as he alone walked out of the storehouse. The guards bowed again, the blue-eyed man was surprised the hostage was not yet dead.

A few meters away, the man answered the call.

"Yes, love?" This was his way of saying he could talk to her for as long as she wished, that he was not in the middle of anything important. It was also a way of avoiding names.

 _'Padre…'_ the voice of his daughter came from the phone, sounding anything but pleased. It was rare, considering the tight bond between them. _'I have some interesting news for you which I think will interest you, just like they interest me. Is it alright if we dine together tonight?'_

"I will see what can be done, my dear. What happened?"

 _'Something I doubt you would agree with. I also have some questions for you, Padre. I believe I am old enough now.'_

"Questions about…?"

 _'You. And me. I hope you haven't forgotten, Padre.'_

"I have not. We will dine this evening, then."

 _'Thank you, Padre. Could you give me an hour, please?'_

"After I am done with something, I will make reservations and announce you."

 _'Please text me, then. I want to watch a movie.'_

"Very well. Take care."

 _'You too. I love you.'_

"And I, you." With that, the man ended the call and casually walked back inside the store house.

The hostage was trembling in terror and agony with his legs crushed and bleeding. The torturer held a bloody pipe in his hand. When the Dragon threw him a questioning look, the torturer bowed his head.

"He had insulted you, master."

"Ah, I see… Playing with fire, aren't we?" He asked as he approached the hostage.

"Y-your empire is g-going d-down!" The man stuttered.

"Is that so…? And who is to blame for that?" the Dragon asked. "Guards!"

A few seconds later, the two guards stood straight in front of him.

"Do you smoke?" He casually asked the blue-eyed guard.

"No, Sir!"

"Do you?" He asked the black-eyed guard next.

"Yes, master!"

"Give me a cigarette."

The guard quickly took out a package and gave his master the last cigarette. In return, the leader took out $100 and put them in the empty cigarettes package. The guard froze in shock, his black eyes going from the money to his employer and back again.

"Buy yourself something better. These stink."

"Y-yes, master!"

"You can go."

The Dragon sounded bored, but that was only the mask he was wearing. The two made their way to the only entrance of the storehouse that hadn't been barricaded with boxes.

The hostage watched hopelessly as the Dragon forced the cigarette into his mouth until the butt was reaching the entrance of his throat.

"I will burn your tongue before I watch you fry. Who paid you?"

"…Wease… Wease, gno… Uss…"

Seeing some progress, the Dragon slapped the back of the hostage's head, sending the cigarette flying out of his mouth and into the puddle of piss and gasoline on the floor.

"Say it again."

"Ross… I-I don't know anything else. His name is Ross. Please, free me. Please. I swear I won't talk."

"Just like you didn't talk now."

The Dragon picked up the cigarette, punched the victim in the abdomen enough to get him gasping for air and put the cigarette into his mouth. He held his palm open and the torturer passed him a box of matches. Trembling, the hostage began to shake his head, crying in despair.

The Dragon lit up the cigarette, which burned the inside of the traitor's mouth. He let the match fall in the puddle of gasoline, lighting up the man's body as he struggled in agony.

"Tell the guards they may leave."

The Dragon took out $1000 for each of the guards and sent the torturer to pay them and make sure they will be gone by the time the building would be on fire.

When he was back, the Dragon shot the torturer's legs. Seeing his confused expression, he decided to explain.

"You were useless."

The next bullet went through the torturer's head, blowing his brains on the wall. With a pleased smirk on his face, the Dragon poured a second can of gasoline from one of the boxes 'til near the burning traitor, who was still alive and screaming.

"Wait for your two daughters and wife before going to hell. Salute the devil for me."

Smiling as if it was the most amusing joke he had ever heard, the Dragon left the storehouse, driving away and towards the city. A couple of minutes later, the storehouse exploded as the fire had reached the box filled with dynamite.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Please favorite, follow, **review,** or PM me. I am open to suggestions and critiques and I will consider everything. If you have any questions, feel free to leave them in a message or in the review section. _

_Also, the story is being proofread and corrected by the beta reader **Eat4Fun.**_

 _This chapter was both fun and exhausting to write... but it may be one of my favorites. However, for the readers who find it difficult to read, here's what happened..._

 ** _Summary:_**

 _The Dragon paid one man to torture one of his new employees after a robbery. The employee is accused of collaborating with the thieves and leaking information. When he arrives, he continues questioning the employee, then his phone rings and Caterina asks the two of them to dine together later that evening. The Dragon will finish up the questioning after the employee admits he had been corrupted by Ross. The torturer is sent to pay the two guards and send them off, then executed for being inefficient. The Dragon will set everything on fire and little after his leave, the storehouse explodes._


	7. VI – Killing Time

_VI – Killing Time_

* * *

Caterina hung up the phone and ran her fingers over the collection of DVDs. She selected one that promised a good-looking actor in the main role, nice landscapes, possibly awesome music, and action. She turned on the large TV and ordered a bowl of dark cherries in her room while lying on her bed with phone in hand and the remote by her side.

As the film was about to start, she sent the typical _'Hi. What's up?'_ message to Light's number.

 _'Nothing much. You?'_ followed a few seconds as the girl's phone vibrated silently.

 _'Home, waiting.'_

 _'For who, may I ask?'_

 _'You may…'_

 _'But you won't answer.'_ He replied along with a laughing emoticon.

 _'I will, this time.'_ She replied with a smiling face. _'Waiting for daddy.'_

 _'I see. Is he at work?'_ Light tried to get some information.

 _'Maybe.'_

 _'Maybe?'_

 _'I'm not sure. I don't care either.'_ Caterina clarified her answer.

Vincent knocked on the door.

"Signorina-?"

"Yes, I ordered these." She cut his questions and gestured for the butler to leave the bowl of cherries on the bed, by her side. The film was eventually starting, so she didn't bother looking at the servant.

"Anything-?"

"I want a lemonade with raspberries, oranges, and honey."

The man hated being interrupted, but swallowed his anger and just nodded.

"Go!" She shooed him away, clearly annoyed by his angry stare. The butler left the room.

She looked at her phone again while playing with a freshly washed cherry between her lips.

 _'How so?'_ the first text read. Immediately after, there was another. _'Do I bother you?'_

 _'No, you don't. V. does.'_

 _'V.?'_

 _'Vincent. The butler, remember? Tall, half-bald, grumpy.'_

Light took a moment to reply. _'I remember him.'_

 _'He's feeling important,'_ the girl commented.

 _'What did he do?'_ At the other end of the line, Light was growing curious about what the girl's standards were. He was at his desk, solving some math exercises just to make sure he was not going to forget anything during summer break. His phone's screen lit up with a 'Ding!' so he picked it up.

 _'Staring at me in anger. I'm good at reading people. He doesn't respect me,'_ he read from the screen.

 _'Maybe he's having a bad day.'_ Light didn't really feel like protecting the old man, but he wanted a better reason that would actually explain Caterina's personality.

 _'He's been having these for years.'_

 _'How can you be so sure?'_

 _'I heard him.'_ Now this was getting somewhere… He put down the pen and began typing with both hands.

At the other end of the line, Vincent was back with the girl's lemonade. She took a sip and shooed him away again.

 _'You did?'_ Light sent.

After a few seconds of waiting, he received her answer. _'He was talking to the driver. Called me a spoiled brat, I'm sorry I didn't record him. He would have gone down in flames.'_ After that, a grinning devil emoticon.

 _'You know more about these fires than most people, don't you?'_ His detective intuition wasn't lying, but Light still needed to hear the truth confirmed.

 _'I read the news from time to time.'_

 _'So you don't like your butler. Why not ask your father to fire him?'_ This time, Light used the word on purpose.

 _'Literally…?'_ she sent back along with a laughing icon.

 _'Could you?'_ Light texted in return, still trying to corner her.

 _'I have no evidence. I didn't record that conversation, remember?'_

But you had a witness, Light thought to himself. _'Why not ask the driver to confirm it?'_

 _'Daddy works with solid evidence, not claims and accusations. Otherwise V. would be gone by now.'_

 _'So you're not as powerful as I thought.'_ If cornering wasn't going to work, perhaps a tease would do.

 _'Never said I am. Only that I will be.'_

 _'Is that so…?'_

 _'It is. Want to bet?'_

 _'On what?'_ Light asked. He wasn't much of a gambler, but he wanted to use any opportunity to find more about the girl.

 _'You choose. But V. will be out of this house by New Year's.'_

 _'That's a long time.'_

 _'I need evidence, remember? So what do I get when I win?'_ she sent with a winking face.

Light took a moment to think about it. What could a girl like her want? She seemed to have everything she asked for and claimed she had the world at her feet. _'What do you want?'_

 _'You. My pet. One week.'_

The Japanese boy read that twice. _'What do you mean?'_

 _'You'll come on a vacation with me and keep me company. Next year, in summer.'_

 _'Doesn't sound much like a lost bet punishment.'_

 _'We'll see about that. Servants refuse this and daddy is usually busy.'_

 _'How about your mother?'_ Light remembered the girl didn't seem very excited when asked about her mother, so he assumed they were not close.

 _'I'd rather not.'_

 _'Ah, I see…'_ As soon as he saw the opportunity, he took it.

 _'Mm?'_

 _'You're lonely. Your prize would be company.'_

 _'Am not.'_

 _'Are so.'_

 _'I don't need a bet for that. I can have someone taking your place any moment.'_

 _'Even here in Japan?'_ he asked, already knowing the answer. Caterina had seen the text, but didn't seem eager to reply. _'And what if I win?'_

 _'You choose.'_

He thought about it for a bit. What would she hate and love at the same time? He already figured out her weak spot was loneliness, and he knew she loved to be spoiled with attention. He remembered her trying to get his attention back on her if he happened to be eyeing other girls when they met.

 _'You will spend a week living with me. I'll talk to my family about it.'_

 _'No.'_

 _'You can share the room with my sister.'_

 _'No. Way. No. I refuse.'_

 _'Why?'_

 _'I want my own bedroom and room service.'_

 _'You will get company all day long. My sister is an extrovert and very into fashion and celebrities. You should get along fine, don't you think?'_ He couldn't help a wide grin from spreading on his face as he waited for the girl's reply.

 _'She would get along with my mother. And I. Am. Not. Sharing.'_

 _'I thought you liked the superficial side of the world,'_ he continued.

 _'What an insult.'_

 _'Is it?'_

 _'If you're done insulting me, I have a meeting to attend.'_

That text surprised him. _'Already into business?'_

 _'It doesn't concern you.'_

 _'Is it with your father?'_

 _'No money, no trust, no details.'_

Light laughed quietly to himself and shook his head. This girl was different. He found it interesting… If usually success was much too easy for him, with her it was clearly not going to be that easy.

 _'Be safe, then.'_

 _'I have bodyguards for that.'_

Caterina was clearly mad, which amused him. He tried to imagine her doll face angry and pouting. _'Text me when you're back?'_

 _'Good night.'_

 _'You too. Nice dreams.'_

Caterina fumed when she read his reply. She hated how ironic he could get when talking to her and how he seemed to guess some things without even seeing her facial expression or listening to her intonation. He was annoying and scary in a very new way… How did he know she was lonely when she still had trouble admitting that to herself?! Who was this guy? Little did she know he had inherited these abilities from the Police Chief.

But that matter could wait, because she had just received a text from her father.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _Because of some future scenes in the next to chapters, the rating will be changed to Mature once the seventh chapter is published. I am aware I can't really stop younger readers from accessing the story, but if you do, you are reading it at your own risk. There are no explicit sex scenes, but some moments of high emotional and sexual tension that I doubt teens (under 15-16 at least) should read._

 _The story is being proofread by the beta reader **Eat4Fun.**_

 _If you have any feedback to send, that would really help motivate me to write more. That being said, please follow, **review** , and/or PM me. Thanks for reading and hopefully I'll hear from you soon. _


	8. VII – Nightfall

_VII – Nightfall_

* * *

The car stopped in front of an expensive hotel with an even more expensive restaurant on top. The girl was escorted by two bodyguards to the elevator, then was left alone. Nothing could happen to her from the moment the glass doors of the lift closed because it belonged to the restaurant, so whoever was staying at the hotel would have used one of the many other elevators.

It was a few minutes before nine and the city lights were turning on timidly every here and there as the sun was descending. Caterina couldn't help but feel her insides turn and her heart tremble as she saw Tokyo from above, feeling on top of the world. It was the main reason why the family's apartments were always at the top floor of the tallest hotels available, no matter where they went. She loved to see everyone else below, well aware they were not aware of her existence.

The doors opened eventually and a waiter bowed to her.

"Good evening, miss! Should I show you to a free table?" He offered with a bright and joyful smile.

"Thank you, but I am meeting someone. I believe he is already here."

"Ah, yes, I believe I know." The waiter, having noticed the way Caterina was acting so casual, almost bored with him and thinking herself superior, immediately thought she was going to meet the man sitting alone at a table in the corner. It was possibly the best table in the restaurant, with a breathtaking view of Tokyo and close to the scene, but not as close as to have the wine waving in the slow rhythm of Jazz.

The girl followed him to the table, smiling softly. She was wearing the simplest black dress, with a deep V-neck exposing the white skin between her small breasts and balanced with a little silvery owl with its eyes and belly dressed in diamonds. The A-line skirt stopped just above the knees, hiding her small hips and drawing some attention to her lean legs.

The waiter bowed.

Her father stood up and took her hand, looked her up and down, then wrapped her in a tight but short embrace.

"My dear, you look stunning!" He complimented her before the waiter gave them the menus and left.

"Thank you, Padre."

The man, wearing black dress pants, a shirt, and a dark red suit coat threw her another admiring look before his eyes stopped on her wrist.

"Caterina…" He began.

"I know." She sat down and her father did as well. "You don't like these, but they're my style. Besides, they match. See?" Caterina showed him a little diamond owl charm dangling on her hand, hung by the center piece of a set of three black leather bracelets with silver and clear diamonds.

The Dragon didn't like her wearing more than one bracelet. He saw them as tribal and lacking of taste or class. However, if his daughter was having a phase, he could… tolerate them for a little while.

"You said you wanted to talk…" He began.

"Shouldn't we eat first? And can't we go somewhere less… crowded?" She said, while looking at the full restaurant. At the other end of the room, someone was celebrating their birthday, or something like that because a three-layered cake was being brought to their table.

The Dragon held back a sigh.

"As you wish. Where do you want to go?"

Because of his position at work, another father was just sitting down for dinner around nine in the afternoon. He sighed, glad to be finally home after a full day. His wife had set the table and was calling the two children as well when he decided to switch a few TV channels in search of something less annoying than the music his daughter liked.

"Daddy! You're home!"

Though a young teen, the girl still behaved like a child most of the time. She smiled brightly and took her seat, her mother following a moment later. The two sat on each side of the head of the family, the mother's back towards the kitchen, the girl's towards the TV and the living room.

"Yes, I'm home…" The man answered with a tired smile.

"You're working on something important again, right, father?" Light asked as he took his seat, facing his father and with his back towards the hall.

"Yes. It's a difficult case, we have few evidence and clues that don't seem to make sense…"

"Like solving a puzzle without all the pieces?" The girl asked.

"They're _all_ like puzzles in a way, Sayu." Her brother answered her.

"How do _you_ know? You don't work there. You didn't solve any case!"

"Not yet, but I _will_." He patiently brushed off her comment.

"You _will_ , so you don't know how to solve a case right now."

"No, not yet…" The man spoke, making both his children shut up and pay attention. "If you say you really want to work in the field, maybe I can arrange for you to come help as a volunteer a few times. You won't be allowed to discuss anything related to the case at hand with either the media or your friends."

"We know, dad. You always say that…" Sayu stopped him, only to earn herself a sharp glare from her brother.

"You shouldn't interrupt your father, Sayu." Her mother briefly intervened and when she saw herself standing alone, the girl pouted.

"As long as I won't be scheduled during classes, I can offer to assist or help with anything. Keeping information secret won't be a problem for me." Light continued the discussion.

"Yea, 'cause you don't have a life…" His younger sister mumbled.

"I will try, but I can't guarantee. If I sign you up in a team, you might be asked to go at strange hours, during the night or early morning before school. It all depends on when a new crime scene is reported."

"I see…" Light fell silent, hesitating.

The voice in his head began making itself heard once again. _'Say yes… Come on, accept it. You will get to see a crime scene and pick up clues. I want to see how the police search for evidence. I want to see how they work, even if we'll lose a night or two.'_

After dinner was over and his father had announced he was going to sleep, Sayu was asked to help her mother with the dishes while Light made his way up the stairs to his room.

Should he accept the offer…? There were a few advantages with considerable weight, like gaining experience, catching a taste of the job he wanted to have for the next few decades of his life, maybe even form some connections that will certainly come in handy if he decided he wanted to stay in the domain.

On the other hand, he would have to be at the team's disposal at any hour of the day or the night, he would most likely make a fool of himself in the beginning and he might even alter some evidence, and he wouldn't really get to use his mind. His father offered him an opportunity to work in the field, but he wanted something a bit different. Light would have rather been assigned to see the everyday work of a top class detective, the brains that put the pieces together and form theories around the criminal's profile until they find the real criminal. But collecting evidence was important as well, these were the pieces of the puzzle that the leader of the team had to solve.

He sat at his desk and turned on the TV. The reporter was talking about the most famous case in Japan since the end of the Second World War.

 _'…victims were found inside. The police had not yet identified them, but they seem to be the bodies of two men. One of them had his skull broken. There is a fisherman who said that he had heard gun shots before the explosion that started the fire. The entire building had been burned to ashes. As you can see behind me, only three poles of the original structure are still standing.'_

The teenager let out a long and heavy sigh. He couldn't imagine the pain felt by the families of these victims…

 _'I have received new information! It seems one of the men had been found with multiple fractures and the police is suspecting he had been tortured!'_

Light switched the channel to another one. It was now a few minutes after ten and there were news on most channels. Yet, they all talked about the same things…

 _'…crushed into a family car. It seems the truck driver was to blame, but the police are still investigating the matter. The driver of the car is in the hospital and his wife, who was in the passenger seat, is in critical condition. A five-year-old had been crushed-'_

 _'The first premise is suicide, but the police are investigating the case. The man was forty-six and had a drinking problem from what the family had declared. He had not left any letter or note behind. His son says he cannot explain his father's gesture-'_

 _'…reason appears to be robbery. The old woman was found dead in the back of the house around twelve this morning by a neighbor. She has three sons and two daughters, but none could be contacted for-'_

 _'…is now in a psychiatric hospital after murdering her husband and two children this Tuesday, claiming-'_

 _'…old drinking friends. When he was questioned about his crime this morning, the man declared he regrets his actions and hopes that his friend will survive. We remind you that yesterday, a thirty-two year old man attacked another, aged twenty-nine, with a pocket knife after-'_

And of course, there was always that one subject…

 _'…this afternoon. The firemen are still fighting to put out the fire, and it is believed the basement and the first floor had been flooded in fuel. The fire is believed to be no accident, but set on purpose. The neighbors said they knew about at least two teenagers, a toddler and the lady of the house being home at the time they had seen the flames.'_

 _'A new body had been discovered in the basement of the block of flats that had burned four days ago. This is the forty-eighth skeleton found between the ashes. The only chance of identifying the victim is the DNA test, which will prove difficult.'_

 _'A yacht had suddenly exploded in the middle of the sea. The authorities had been alerted by a couple walking on the beach this evening who saw the flames and called the emergency number.'_

It seemed to be everywhere! Whoever was ordering these fires, they simply couldn't be a coincidence. Summer was just beginning, it wasn't even June yet, so it was too early for spontaneous fire seasons. These were ordered by the same man or group of men and they had many others working for them. Light could see it clearly, though nobody talked about this possibility on the news.

Standing up all of a sudden, he headed towards the door and from there, down the hall to his parents' bedroom. He knocked once and waited with his heart beating in his throat.

"Father…?"

A few seconds passed and he thought his father had went to sleep, tired after a full day. But just as Light was about to give up, the door opened.

"Yes? What is it?"

"Father, I have thought about it and I accept. If you can, please sign me up as a volunteer." He declared with the determination only a clueless teenager could show.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Story proofread by beta **Eat4Fun**. _

_Favorite/Follow, **Review**_ **,** _or PM me. Critiques and suggestions are welcomed and will be considered._

 _...Do people even read Notes anymore, or am I the only one who does?_


	9. VIII - Blood Ties

_VIII - Blood Ties_

* * *

After enjoying their meal, the Dragon reserved an apartment at the top floor of a hotel, one that had an outdoor pool with one of the walls made of glass. After that, he called their driver and asked him to tell the butler to pack their bathing suits for them, as the two enjoyed the dessert. Because he had been holding back from alcohol for years and because the memory of wine tempted him from time to time, the Dragon eventually let himself be talked into ordering one glass of wine. Caterina wasn't old enough for that yet, so she had some ice cream with red fruit.

"Have you told Anastasia where you were going?" the man asked.

"Out, in town. It's not a lie, is it?"

"...That depends."

"We're not leaving Tokyo, so it's not a lie."

"But a vague answer…" he began. "That can be the equivalent of a lie."

"What would you do if I gave you that same answer…?"

"To you? Nothing. Though it would burden me greatly."

"What would you do if someone else gave you that answer?" The girl continued to force her luck, aware of the man's love for her.

He showed her a half-smirk, trying to put a decent answer into words. "They would not dare. But if they did… Well, they would become an example for everyone else to not give me such vague and easy to interpret answers."

Caterina smiled. "I understand. But what if that wasn't an option? What if someone is being disrespectful because they have something you need or know something no one else could tell you, so they're taking advantage of that?"

"In this world, nobody can keep an important secret to themselves, unless they are either amnesic or dead. People confess even in their sleep or in a coma. They talk about it on their death bed, or after too many drinks with 'friends'. There will always be someone who knows the same thing or someone who knows where to find the treasure. People are like that…"

The girl nodded. Immediately after that, his phone received an automatic message that the driver was just 100 meters away from the building in which they were.

"They're here. Let's go." He didn't sound demanding and it was one of the rare occasions he was merely suggesting something. The man seemed more relaxed than usual.

"We should, yes." She took her father's hand and stood up. The Dragon had already paid in advance for what they had just had, perhaps a little more than that.

The man found himself looking at his daughter with a love beyond that of a parent. His eyes went down her skinny back to her small hips as she went into the water first. The girl loved swimming and that was the first thing she did, opening her eyes underwater and watching the trembling lights of Tokyo through the glass wall of the pool. She jumped up and leaned on the edge of the pool, reaching for her ice cold juice and looking up at her father.

He had some scars on him, but they looked too old for the girl to worry about them. One of them looked a little ugly, his right leg being covered in long trembling lines of scar tissue. Besides that, a few round scars from where he had been shot a few times and a few cuts, longer or shorter. The man sat on the edge of the pool and drank some tea, avoiding any thoughts of alcohol he still got more often than he would have liked to admit.

"You wanted to talk…" he said in a calm and almost defeated voice.

"I want to know of your past, so I can understand your present."

"Caterina… I am not someone you would be proud to have as your parent."

"But I am, anyway. I doubt there's something you can tell me that could change that."

The Dragon sighed, sliding into the water and swimming to the other end of the pool so he could look down over the city and avoid her eyes for a few moments.

"I am not Italian, at least not fully… My mother was Chinese, but she abandoned me at the backdoor of a hospital. I could never find her, I'm not even sure if she's alive nowadays," he began. His voice was cold, but Caterina still noticed the sorrow he was trying to hide.

"Were you adopted, then?"

"I was. I stabbed him twenty times because only days before my twentieth birthday, a woman came to our door with a child."

"Why? Did you know her?"

"No… But my adoptive father did. The child looked very much like him. I believed the woman when she claimed my adoptive father was not faithful. She had no reason to lie either. We were poor, he was an alcoholic and had nothing to gain from lying. Your grandmother was a bit old at the time, too. She was fifty-three the last time I saw her. That was twenty years before I met your mother."

"Is she still alive?" the girl asked, swimming over to her father with her eyes at the dragon tattooed on his back.

"She is. I was too ashamed to face her again, but we kept in touch through letters and after she wrote to me her eyes were weakening, I hired a woman to look after her for a few years. She's now at a private facility, with medical assistance, food, running water, clothes, and anything she may need."

"Really? Where is that?" Caterina leaned on the edge of the pool, her arm against his.

"In the south of Sicily." He smiled. Truly, genuinely, peacefully, he allowed himself to smile. "She always wished to see the Mediterranean, but never could afford it. Now she can walk on the shore any time of the day."

"What happened to the other woman? The one with the child."

"She was murdered a few years later." When he saw the look on his daughter's face, he decided to clarify that. "She was a lady of the night, if you understand… She most likely got involved with the wrong men. Like so many others got involved with me around the same time."

"What do you mean?"

"I had a night bar. I'm a self-taught, my adoptive family couldn't support my school for more than four years." The man gestured with his hand over the city and beyond. "Everything you see here, I can buy. And I've worked for this money with my two hands and a fully loaded gun."

"You mean you slaughtered your way to the top."

"Slaughtered, stole, and burned my way to a golden throne. People don't believe in threats anymore, the world today only fears the power of examples. Burn ten families and end their bloodlines, and a continent will bow down to you."

"I don't believe in this."

"Because you're a woman. Or you will be, soon. But you are not as weak as most, you are stronger than any other I've met."

"Padre…" she began, "I have nothing against punishing the traitors and the deceivers, but why go after their families too? What are they blamed of?"

"It's not about blame, my dear. It's about ruling out the risk of revenge. One baby spared can grow up to overpower me and conquer the world. And women, they are weak and annoying. They will try to push the authorities to go after my men and many will eventually go insane. In some cases, death is a gift."

"I still don't believe you."

"I had men working for me who raped. I ordered the execution of their victims, because women who go through pain can either go insane or rise above anything and anyone on their way towards revenge."

"You're afraid…" she mumbled, earning herself a cold glare.

"Caterina…"

"You are! You fear revenge, you are terrified of the thought of losing part or all of what you've built. It's why we are here, in Japan, right? So you can tame a rebellion before it can become a real threat. Is this why there are so many fires all over the country? And on the coast of China, too?"

"My love, it's got nothing to do with fear. I am simply being cautious, like I've been ever since I can remember."

"Is this why you have so many guards looking after me and Anastasia? You fear somebody else might want to hurt us to reach you… don't you?"

The man sighed heavily and laid on his back on the water. The night was chilly, but the pool was heated.

"You say you love me, but it's not that… You love your power, your empire, you love ruling the world from the shadows of many companies that are in fact one. That's it, isn't it?" she spoke in a low, cold voice, glaring at her father with the look of utter betrayal the man remembered from the face of her young mother.

"Caterina…" he sighed as he stood in front of her.

"No more 'Caterina'. You never tell me anything. Are you so afraid of how weak I am? Because I had the chance to be born a woman. Did you want a son? Why didn't you just leave my mother alone then? You could have gotten any other woman to give you a son."

"I never would have left you, my only child, at the mercy of some strangers!"

"But you would have rather had a son. An heir. One to be respected, to continue your business. Look at me and tell me you wished for a girl this whole time-"

Her words chocked her as the man caught her wrist and pulled her closer, splashing warm water on their cold shoulders and chests. She looked up at him, fighting the angry tears threatening to spill from the corners of her eyes. Caterina refused to appear weak at all costs, even if her throat burned with pain from holding back. She watched her father showing emotion for the first time in years. The man looked hurt and angry, and she could only hope he wouldn't let his aggressive nature overpower his judgment.

"…If you want the truth, I never wanted a child..."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _Story proofread by **Eat4Fun.**_

 _I keep telling you this and I keep waiting. **Favorite, follow, review, message me.** That means faster updates because I know someone is still reading this. Come on, people! If there's any life in this fandom looking at my story, step out of the shadows. _


	10. IX - Electricity

_IX – Electricity_

* * *

"…If you want the truth, I never wanted a child... Much less a girl."

Caterina stood in front of him in shock, feeling her blood pulsing through her brain, neck, chest, and guts. She felt it pulsing through the veins of her wrist that he held so tightly.

"You…-"

"I am _old_ , Caterina. Do you think I would have wanted a family after surviving on my own for forty years?"

Although he didn't sound accusing, she felt accused. The girl looked from his black eyes to his sharp cheekbones and strong jaws, following a scar on his neck to his shoulder and down his chest. She stopped to look at the bullet hole that had left a round white scar on the left side of his chest, visible even in the low lights of a dark night. Her brows frowned without her realizing it, her lower lip trembling. Her hand went limp in his as the fourteen year old used her remaining strength to keep from crying. Her thin legs trembled and her knees gave in.

The Dragon watched her as she slowly slid from his grip, falling into the water. He felt her breath hot on his skin, drifting from his chest to his waist. The man saw her auburn hair floating around her shoulders as she sunk to her nose in the warm water.

He sighed and walked out of the pool, taking the stairs. The night was chilly and at that height, the wind was even colder. Without a word, he walked into the apartment he had rented for the night and began to dry himself. The bathing suit ended up tossed aside and he turned on the TV.

 _'…earlier this afternoon. The firemen are still fighting to put out the fire, and it is believed the basement and the first floor had been flooded in fuel. The fire is believed to be no accident, but set on purpose. The neighbors said they knew about at least two teenagers, a toddler and the lady of the house being home at the time they had seen the flames.'_

So, he had a toddler too… The Dragon watched the report with indifference. The youngest of three children wasn't scheduled to die, but he thought it better that way. Just as he was thinking about it, he noticed a trembling shadow on the wall.

"…Am I weak… in your eyes?" she asked in a calm voice. It sent a chill down the man's spine, unused to his daughter being so emotionless and so brutally calm.

When he turned to face her, he saw the girl dripping in water in her black swimming suit with her hair sticking to her chest and arms in a very uncharacteristic mess. The Dragon saw her green eyes darkened, drained by the very source of female weakness – emotion.

"…What am I to you?" she asked after a long moment of silence.

For another minute, they just stared at each other. Although he was naked and she wasn't far from it, none of them seemed to notice. The wind froze her bones before the Dragon hurried towards her and slid closed the glass doors.

"Caterina…" he breathed out with worry, uncertain of what he was feeling. The man put his large hands on her small shoulders, feeling her wet and cold skin. A few hairs stood up on her skin when she felt the warmth of his body pressed against her, as the man wrapped her in a tight embrace like none of them had known before.

"…Who are you?" she asked on the same tone, forcing all feelings back into the darkest corners of her being before she even had the chance to recognize them.

"…This is enough, for now… I will tell you, little by little." He mumbled, bent over her short frame.

"You won't…" she said in a low voice, her lips moving against her father's skin.

"I will. I swear I will. You will know everything I should have told you before…"

Letting go, the man took a large towel and wrapped it around her, rubbing her arms and back so strongly, the girl found herself taking small half-steps back and forth in order to keep her balance.

Caterina eventually held the towel over her shoulders and turned her back on him.

"…Do I look like her?" she asked all of a sudden.

"Like… who?!" the man asked.

"…Anastasia." The name rolled from her cold lips slowly, with such clarity it frightened him. The girl had a habit of talking fast, of pronouncing names faster than she could talk, so most of the time she didn't pronounce every sound. This time, she did.

The Dragon sighed. The girl let the towel fall to the ground and took off the top part of her bathing suit, standing in front of him only in a soaked bikini bottom.

His eyes fell from her face to her body, recognizing the beautiful fragility her mother had. He could tell this was how Anastasia had most likely looked like, three years before they slept together. He felt the desire to take her, the instincts threatening to take over at any moment, but he knew better…

"…You do," he eventually admitted upon swallowing hard and trying to control his breathing. "You look exactly like her, only younger and more beautiful."

"I will fade one day. Just like her…"

The man didn't know what to say, watching his daughter with the lust he felt for her mother fifteen years ago. Only this time, there was something more than just lust. He watched the low light of the TV screen play on her small chest, over her barely visible ribs and her flat stomach, unscarred by pregnancy or age. He watched the subtle shadows of her hip bones and the water dripping from her bikini, sliding down her legs in sparkling, cold droplets.

"You could never become as artificial and dead as her."

"Do you know why she does that…?" the girl asked, but only received a confused look from her father as a response. "To keep you interested. She starves herself to stay as thin as me. She filled her breasts with silicone because they were sagging. She glues plastic between her lashes and she doesn't tell you, but it stings. The glue burns her lashes, irritates her eyes. She's slowly going bald, dying her white hairs. She spends weeks every year in the hospital in order to get some plastic surgeries. In order to keep young… She may be superficial, but she's not blind."

The man went to hold his daughter once again and this time, her small hands went up from his hips to his back. She felt him hard against her hips, but knew he valued loyalty above everything else.

"Have you ever cheated…?"

"No."

"You have…"

"I have not," he replied quickly, trying to back away and look her in the eyes. Caterina only laid her head on his chest and held him tighter.

"You have… with me. Tonight… And before. You look at me like a lover, you talk to me like a lover, and you treat me like a lover. Anastasia knows…"

"Then you have already figured it out. I do not care about her, I never did."

"But she does. She always had, I believe."

"She is unimportant."

"She is weak…" Caterina said at the same time. "She is one of the weakest women you had met. Anastasia is weak because she feels too much and acts on feelings… right? She depends on you, she always had. Just like I do…"

The man froze with shock. He opened his mouth to speak, but was too afraid of saying the wrong words. He was terrified to think Caterina might push him away, leave him and never wish to hear of him again.

"…So, what am I to you?" she asked again.

A cold drop of water fell from his hair to her shoulder, sliding down her chest as she took a small step back. The Dragon had lost count of how many times he had to focus on breathing in order to suppress his instincts. He had to constantly remind himself that she was his daughter, and that he was married, that traitors and cheaters deserved nothing but the most painful deaths and that his adoptive father had died for the same sin he was so tempted to commit.

"You are… everything I never had." He mumbled eventually, his voice low and his eyes following the water drops from her hair going down her thin neck and slowly cascading over her collar bones.

"…Do you want me?"

Her hands went from his back around his hips and up his abdomen, reaching for his chest and shoulders. Still, her expression was the same cold and emotionless one that sent cold chills down the Dragon's spine whenever their eyes met.

He sat down on the fur thrown on the floor in front of the couch and grabbed her from behind, his hands going just below her ass and on her thighs. The man pulled her close and kissed her abdomen, just above the line of her bikini. Caterina gasped quietly as surprise washed over her face for a moment.

"I do…" he confessed with his eyes closed, feeling the unfamiliar sensation of guilt and relief biting at his heart. He remembered the last time he had confessed in front of a Cardinal in Rome. He had been too ashamed to admit everything he had done, so when he was asked if he had committed any of the seven deadly sins, the only words he could mutter were that he did.

"…Padre," she said, her voice trembling in fear. This was a side of him she had never seen. It was something unexpected, something for which she wasn't ready.

"I won't…" he began in the same low voice that Caterina never knew. "You deserve the right to choose… I won't rob you of it."

Her arms wrapped around her father's head and she held him against her flat belly. She untied his hair and let it flow on his back. The man closed his eyes and they remained that way for a long time. She didn't move until she felt his hands sliding down her legs.

"You're cold…" he said.

"I am."

He let go of her ankles and she stepped over one of his legs. Caterina wrapped herself in the towel he gave her before and went to sit on his lap. In silence, they tried to dry each other's bodies and hair.

It was long past midnight when Caterina fell asleep and he laid her in bed. The Dragon couldn't close his eyes peacefully, but he kept quiet in the dark apartment, watching television with the volume turned off. He took the couch to avoid waking up his daughter by mistake. A cheap film was on screen which he watched without any interest.

A few streets away, in a different apartment, Anastasia was trying almost desperately to fall asleep. Convinced of her worthlessness in the world, she had washed down her throat three packs of painkillers with a bottle of liquor she ordered from her butler. The old man had brought her two bottles instead and the woman was just about to open the second, her hands trembling and her vision blurred. A loud and desperate sob burned its way back up her throat.

The butler watched from the corner as the woman struggled to open the bottle. His eyes gleamed, aware she would not recall the events of tonight by the time she'd wake up tomorrow. He went and opened the bottle for her.

"I hope you choke."

Pushing the air out of her lungs, Anastasia drank a mouthful. Her throat ached and some drops went down from her lips to her chin, mixing up with tears.

"Nobody loves you. You are a whore. A tramp."

"Gno…" she tried between hiccups and sobs.

"You are a worthless, disgusting whore. A broken toy. What did your family tell you?"

"Ah… don' know… don' care…"

"You're a fabulous liar, you know? Have you considered the movie industry? You'd do great with that big round mouth of yours and the way you suck down alcohol when nobody sees you."

Leaning with one hand on the bottle, she curled up in a corner like a scared child.

"I don'… never…"

The old man stood, glaring at her in disgust. He checked that the windows were closed, then walked towards the door. The woman stumbled behind him, trying to form a coherent phrase. In all her confusion and misery, she was terrified of what was to come. Vincent hurried out of the room and locked her inside, where she would stay until the morning without any company and in complete darkness. Anastasia screamed between sobs, crawling into a corner and holding her head with both of her hands.

Vincent smirked and put the keys in his pocket. After that, he went out to meet with someone and make a few bets, in hope to gain three to five times the money the Dragon paid him. Even if Anastasia was not going to remember the events exactly, she would remember her emotions – fear, shame, regret, self-hate, humiliation? – and that should be enough to push her towards the edge little by little. Without anyone knowing, Vincent had been playing this game for nearly a year, every time Anastasia was left alone with him over the night.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _Last chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun** , released early thanks to **OftheSunandStars** who reviewed. Good to see there's some life out there, and since I promised faster updates, here you go. _


	11. X - Bright Lights

_X – Bright Lights_

* * *

Sunday passed by in a flash. Light barely had time to wake up and realize another week was about to end in only a couple of hours when the moon was already up and the clock shined its silvery tongues over the ninth line. In another quarter hour it was going to be ten o'clock. The student sighed and went downstairs for a cup of tea. His sister was sleeping over at her newest best friend's place whom which Light could be certain Sayu will be breaking up with in the following six months.

He found the living room empty and dark. The TV was turned off and there was no one hugging a pillow on the couch and crying over the death of some soap opera character. The entire space seemed lifeless and cold, even if he knew there was a constant temperature in the entire house. Light found the switch without even looking for it on the wall and the lights turned on.

As he went to the kitchen and boiled some water, he thought about all the crimes in the world. What would he feel if his younger sister would become the victim of some insane homeless man, or a rapist, or a drunk man with no idea of what he is about to do? She was annoying and inferior in terms of intelligence, or perhaps she was just immature, but he still cared about her. He frowned and rubbed his forehead, trying to get rid of an upcoming headache. There was that annoying voice in the back of his head repeating _'You don't… Admit it, you don't really care… You feel nothing for them.'_ But that wasn't true. He cared about his sister, his mother, and his father who he held as an example in life.

He poured the boiling water in a cup over a little tea bag that immediately began to float as if in pain from the hot environment. Was there a hell where souls were boiled and fried for eternity…? Again, the voice made itself heard – _'There is not. Religion is just a fantasy, a tool of manipulation and control used by the leaders. The real gods are mortal.'_

Light shook his head, leaned against the kitchen counter and crossed his arms over his chest, his head hanging low. He frowned. Was there any way to shut it up? This other voice in his thoughts that he never liked. It hasn't always been there, but he couldn't remember the first time he had heard it.

In need of a distraction, he found himself looking at his phone – no missed calls, no messages. He looked over the contacts and the conversations… The last time he had talked to somebody who wasn't selfish enough to pretend they were busy whenever they weren't asking for help with homework was two days ago with Caterina. Still, she hadn't replied yet. The screen only showed she had seen his last message – _'You too. Sweet dreams.'_

The voice was trying to make itself heard again, to complain about the humiliation she was dragging him through or how ironic the girl could get whenever something didn't go the way she imagined. Light on the other hand, was looking at an already typed _'Hey. What's up?'_ that still waited to be sent. _'Don't. That's what she wants, the girl won't answer for hours,'_ the voice warned, but Light still sent it. _'Better in a few hours than never…'_ was his mental response to the voice.

But the reply was much faster than that. Caterina had sent back a cold but secretly interested _'What do you want?'_ from her phone while going through her closet. Fall was on its way and she had to decide with a bit of intuition and a bit of experience what was worth keeping and what will be taking the highway from her closet to some unfortunate second hand store. In other words, the girl was bored, fuming and inevitably alone.

 _'The bet was only an idea. If you don't like it, we can still cancel it.'_

She looked at the screen and rolled her green eyes at the text. _'We made no bet. I didn't agree, remember?'_

 _'Right.'_ Light sent back before she had the time to even put her phone down. That made her consider the possibility of a smile tugging at her lips. _'How did the meeting go?'_

 _'What meeting? The one I won't tell you about?'_

Light smiled bitterly, tasting the irony in her words. _'Yes. Did it turn out as expected?'_ he sent, then threw away the used tea bag and walked back upstairs with the hot mug in one hand and the phone in the pocket of his pants. Surprisingly enough, it took her more than he expected to write a short answer like that.

 _'…More or less.'_

 _'Is that a good 'more or less' or a bad one?'_ he sent back, trying to read her change of attitude.

 _'Sort of. I got what I wanted and I'm not sure I should have wanted it.'_

 _'How ironic.'_

 _'Hm, yea. Whatever.'_ Caterina threw her phone between some pillows and some clothes on her bed and held a shirt in front of her in the mirror. It was old, she had worn it perhaps ten times both in spring and summer, but it still looked good so it was going to be one of those rare exceptions that will probably see a whole year in her amber-scented closet.

Light sighed, feeling rejected yet again. He had long lost count of how many times she had shooed him away only to take him back again. It was tiring and humiliating and the voice in his head was angered to the point he could feel a mild headache coming up soon. Just as he threw his phone on the bed and turned on the TV, he heard another _'Ding!'_ and saw the screen lighting up. He stared at it for a moment, but eventually opened the message.

 _'Done anything interesting this weekend?'_ it read.

 _'More or less,'_ he found himself typing. This wasn't really like himself, it was rather the voice in his head, his darker side making a comment. But he couldn't complain…

 _'Details.'_ Caterina demanded casually as she held a pair of short jeans in front of her. Those were definitely going out of her closet.

 _'No money, no trust, no details'_ he sent back. The voice was taking over, but Light was too frustrated to fight with his other self. Might as well see where it's going, because it sure was interesting to see Caterina faced with a dose of her own stinginess.

 _'Aw, so you don't trust me? And you already know I have enough to buy your life. Friendly reminder, don't try to fuck with me.'_ A puppy face and wink were animating the girl's reply.

 _'Your daddy has the money, not you. You said you're not powerful yet.'_

 _'If I sold a quarter of my closet, I would make more than your daddy makes a year. Though that would be about half of my pocket money for a month… You were saying, honey…?'_

Light found himself taking deep breaths to calm both himself and the voice once he read Caterina's message.

 _'You don't even work for that money. You have no idea of its worth.'_

 _'I guess some of us are luckier than others. Poor unfortunate souls~'_

 _'Don't mess with me…'_ he sent, already typing another reference.

 _'My! I haven't seen this side of you yet. I should mess with you more often.'_ Caterina said, actually sitting down and waiting for a response.

 _'That wouldn't be such a good idea, sweetheart.'_ Since she used a pet name before, the darker side of Light thought it just fine to use one now. Right?

 _'Oh, really? And why is that, apple pie?'_

 _'Curiosity killed the cat, didn't it?'_ he sent back with a clear reference to her name.

 _'But satisfaction brought it back eight more times.'_

 _'Is the kitty sure she has eight more lives to waste?'_

 _'Is this a threat?'_ she eventually sent and a wide grin spread on Light's face.

 _'Does it feel like one?'_

Caterina threw herself back, falling on her wide clothes-covered bed and bouncing a few times. Was he interested at all, or just meanly stinging her for all her sarcasm and irony from before? It felt good to be the cat chasing a mouse, but it was really awkward now that the roles had been reversed.

 _'Just checkin'_ she sent back after a short pause.

 _'Can I call?'_ Caterina read from the screen.

 _'If you want. But I'll put it on speaker.'_

 _'Why?'_ Light asked, the first thought in his mind being that some third person was reading their conversation.

 _'Cleaning out my closet. Need space for the fall collection.'_

 _'Fine.'_

After the potential threat had been ruled out, he pressed the green button and called her. In the mean time, Light threw his shirt on the back of his chair and let himself fall on his bed, looking outside the window and towards the city.

"Talk." Caterina ordered at the other end of the line, not bothering to go through the typical time-consuming introductions of _'hello'_ and _'how are you'_.

"What do you want me to say? I just wanted to hear your voice," he said, taking over the angry voice in his head. Light was calmer now, but Caterina still sounded mad at him.

"Aww, how sweet. Except you were trying to trash-talk me earlier."

"Are you mad at me?" he asked in the sweetest voice he could manage. In truth, he did feel bad about this war between them.

"…If I were, you'd be in hell."

"Caterina, I don't like this…" he began.

"This what?"

"This… constant battle, as if any of us could benefit from a constant tension and war of words. We sting each other with irony and sarcasm and all I can think about is what a waste of time and nerve this is when we could be trying to know each other better, maybe?"

Light left the phone on the bed beside him so he wouldn't have to hold it and threw one arm over his eyes. Caterina threw a pair of jeans and a floral dress in a pile on the floor, one of them still with the label and price on it.

"…I don't know what to say. I don't want to back down in an argument-"

"There's no real argument here now, is there? Why were we fighting two minutes ago?"

"Unimportant, I know…" Caterina sighed. "So, what now?"

"I don't know, you tell me."

"Me? How?"

"What do you want? Do you want to keep this as it is, or do you want to accept a peace offering?" he offered.

"What do you have in mind?" she asked.

"No… I won't tell you until you choose. I don't want you to decide out of greed-"

"Are you calling me greedy?"

"No! I just don't want you to make a decision based on the prize. You understand what I mean, right?"

"Yes… Well, I'm running out of patience and frowning will give me wrinkles." Caterina said in a pitched, superficial voice. After that, she laughed quietly and Light smiled bitterly. "So, what do you have in mind?"

"Do you want to go out with a poor student like me?" he asked in a half-jokingly manner, trying to keep her spirits up. Still, there was the bitterness of two hurt egos blending in with the artificial amusement.

"You're not that poor," she pointed out, starting to feel a bit guilty. Only a bit. A rotting cherry on top – bit.

"You could buy my life, right? So I guess I kind of am."

Had he said it on a different tone, filled with his usual pride and confidence, she would have stung the life out of him. But he sounded almost defeated, obviously trying to manipulate her into feeling bad about earlier and succeeding at it, something that wouldn't have worked through voiceless texts.

"…I hate you. Are you going to turn my every word against me?" she whined.

"You know what they say… Anything you say can and will be used against you." The hint of amusement in his voice told her she was right to suspect him of toying with her emotions.

Caterina remembered her talk with her father. _'Am I weak… in your eyes?'_

"I have the right to know what I'm being accused of."

"Nothing, yet. I lack the very thing you do – evidence."

"Oh, so you're not coming to arrest me, then?" she asked in the flirty voice that got both boys and girls boil for her.

"…I'm afraid I can't afford that, but you can always surrender."

The girl was surprised to hear a faint purr in his tone.

"Catch me or make me."

"See what I meant…?" he asked and the girl pressed the phone to her ear.

"What…?"

"It's more pleasant to talk like this rather than how we were conversing ten minutes ago." He smiled, hearing the interest of the girl in the tone of her voice. "Hold on a second."

"Hmm? Why?" Caterina asked, but no reply came. "Hello?"

Just as she was about to hung up, she heard him again. "I'm thirsty."

"What are you drinking?"

"Good old water. What did you think?" Even if the tea was still steaming on his desk, Light reached out for a bottle of water. Why? Because it happened to be sitting by its bed exactly for this kind of moments - when thirst became a problem, but so was laziness.

"Something more interesting…"

"The tears of corrupted businessmen?" he asked with the clear intention of picking on her father.

"Something like that. Or lemonade. I heard losers have sore tears."

"If you cried more often, perhaps you'd know."

"Oh, but I do," she said, "They taste like foundation and shattered dreams."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _* Disney reference (Ursula's song) and Temposhark (Don't Mess with Me)_

 _Thanks to **Coldheart1206,** now you have another update. Keep following, keep **review**_ _ing, favorite or message me, and you will get faster updates. At the moment, I have already written ten other chapters. The more active you are, the more you get to read. Some call it blackmailing, I call it motivational trading. Also, things are about to get messy as the timeline approaches the manga events. Soon, we will be mentioning the LA BB case._

 _Merry Christmas, **happy holidays** , regardless of what you may be celebrating. With a bit of luck, we may hear from each other before New Year as well, with the beginning of Part 2. Please enjoy the last few chapters in which all main characters are alive. _

_Remember, you can celebrate without getting shitfaced. Follow Ryuk's example and chew down an apple instead. :D_

 _PS. I really, really hope there are no kids reading this. You may lie to the Internet, but believe me, there isn't anything interesting here. Wait until you're fifteen to read such things. I'm telling you, there's no rush. By that time, you will have probably had enough of discrimination, hatred, violence, sex, and all the ways in which our world is rotting. If you ARE reading this at a young age though, please remember this is a fictional story, my (the author's) protest against modern society, and by NO means to be taken as an example. Okay? DO NOT take any of these characters as an example. A counter-example, yes, but not an example. Be the opposite of everything you read here and you will do the world a favor._

 ** _Update :_**

 _Yes, I am serious about not getting shitfaced. Although I wrapped it up like a joke, I really meant that._

 _On a second note, I noticed I had thought of something but didn't explain it, so it looked like a plot hole. Keep pointing these out in the future by reviewing and they will be clarified._

 _Also, this chapter had been proofread by **Eat4Fun** and updated._


	12. XI - Red

_XI –Red_

* * *

Roughly two months and a half after the Dragon had burned alive many of his Asian employees and their families, another case was proving quite interesting in the United States. The man had a habit of collecting serial killers stories, so the chance of watching an investigation going on was always exciting. For information that wasn't in the press, he paid one man to get in the team of a certain detective working on his own. However, when it didn't work and his man was caught, he ordered his execution with the help of a prison guard. Poison was the best choice in these kinds of situations.

In the mean time, the newest summer collection of Anastasia was selling worldwide. The blonde woman appeared with Misa in countless interviews and shows, receiving the only analgesic Anastasia was allowed – praise. The Dragon had hired a doctor to check on her twice a day and keep her away from pills and alcohol. Of course, to Anastasia, this was inexplicable, but it wasn't like she had any word to say in any of it.

Misa kept trying to make friends with Caterina, only to be shooed away rudely. Needless to say, she began to hate the auburn-haired girl with her many bracelets and layered necklaces. She tried to copy her style, but found jeans uncomfortable and manly. Loose tops and plain T-shirts were so simple and boring, Misa swore to never make herself look so ugly and boyish. And how in the name of God could Caterina wear that long and very sharp cat eye-liner, perfect every single day? Of course, Misa had yet to discover the precision of the scotch tape.

But with beauty comes darkness. Only a few days after the Believe Bridesmaid was found strangled, the Dragon decided his daughter was old enough to see the dark side of the world that he ruled. On the first day, he showed her pictures of a similar crime scene. She saw the empty look on the victim's face, forever frozen in the purple horror of asphyxiation. She saw the large bruises on the neck in the shape of two human hands. She saw the red eyeballs and the bloody nails of the corpse, showing she had gone down with a fight.

The next day, on August 4th, the Quarter Queen was found dead in her apartment. By evening, The Dragon had given the details of her death to Caterina more bluntly than she would have liked. Drugs, the head crushed against a wall, the eyeballs crushed post-mortem, the little doll left behind and the code meant to tell the investigators who the next victim was going to be were all a little too much. She felt her stomach turning as she looked at the picture showing the girl's crushed eyeballs, but refused to look away for the sole reason of her father being by her side. If skipping a meal or two was the price to prove both of them she was not as weak as she saw herself and feared her father saw her too, then it was definitely worth it. Or at least, she tried to tell herself that.

On August the 5th, just as Anastasia was welcomed on a talk show studio, one of the cameramen walked straight towards her while holding a gun. He shot ten people – coworkers, the host, body guards, a police officer, and spectators – but was taken down only seconds before a bullet passed Anastasia's head so close she could hear it flying millimeters away from her ear.

After Light had seen the victims being taken away in ambulances, cringing in agony or fainting from the pain and terror, he knew for sure his dream would be to stop as many criminals as humanly possible. The voice in his head was an enthusiastic supporter of the death penalty, but Light would have considered it enough to have the criminals locked away someplace secure where they could only hurt themselves.

At night, he called Caterina again. This time though, she didn't pick up. A few seconds later, he received a text message instead saying _'I don't feel like talking. What's up?'._

 _'Why not?'_

 _'Too much red on the canvas.'_

 _'Same here. How are things with your family and V?'_

 _'I get my wishes and regret I ever wished them. You?'_

 _'Same, only I don't regret my wish. I think I've got it figured out.'_

 _'What do you mean?'_

 _'What I want to do in life, you know?'_

 _'Ah yes, you're free to choose. I forgot.'_

Light looked at the screen for a moment, his expression bitter in the darkness of his room. _'Wouldn't it be great if there was a world without criminals?'_

 _'Perhaps. I don't daydream of the impossible.'_

 _'Is your mom alright?'_

 _'Scared, terrified, probably crying. But she'll be fine.'_

 _'Do you want us to meet?'_ he asked, waiting for a few long seconds for a reply.

 _'We keep saying that since June and we never do.'_

 _'I know. We're never free at the same time during the day.'_

Caterina looked at the screen for a few long moments. _'I guess… The only reason I'll go out of my room tonight is chocolate.'_

Light felt a bitter smile tugging at his lips. _'It's only 7. I can come pick you up if you want to walk.'_

For a bit, he thought Caterina was debating whether or not she wanted to walk. _'8 pm?'_

 _'Sure.'_

As Caterina stood up and dragged her feet to the bathroom, she heard her mother yelling at Vincent to be left alone. She was sick of hearing these soap opera "fights" between the broken lady of the house and the insensitive servant who happened to be around at the wrong time. Ever since the night when she went dining with her father, Caterina and her mother could not be in the same room for more than a second without glaring and yelling at each other.

The girl washed herself, shaved, used her usual hair products and wrapped a towel around her head. After drying herself and getting dressed from waist down, she went back into the bathroom to comb and dry her hair. Her eyes stared at her reflection in the half-foggy mirror as questions began to ring in the back of her mind. Was she superficial? Was her routine helping her look good, or was it just spoiling her natural beauty with fakery?

She wasn't even fifteen yet, but horribly afraid of the day she will see the first wrinkles creeping on her porcelain face. She looked at her long hair tangled in a mess of wet curls, sticking to her chest and her back. Turning on the side, Caterina examined the bones of her shoulders, her ribcage, and the spine showing through her skin. She looked at her small butt, already taking a rounder shape. She looked at her thighs that she was so tempted to hate for growing thicker with every passing month. Tight jeans could still create the illusion of having lean legs, but she was horrified of the thought she was going to be struggling with fat and cellulite in a year or maybe less.

Feeling like the sky was just about to fall, the girl fought back tears as she stared herself in the mirror, being her own worst critic. She had her mother's friends working in the fashion industry telling her she was beautiful. A few photographers tried to convince her to pose and become an aspiring model. But she refused… She refused out of fear of not being the very best at it, fear of being the second from the top, surpassed by some other girl more beautiful than her. _'Because you are a woman… Women are weak…'_ her father's words echoed through her mind.

Her eyes stopped on her left wrist, the one she had concealed with thin bracelets. For a second, she imagined blood flowing from her veins, going down her fingers and gathering in the sink. Red, red blood, like her mother's nails and her hair in the hot, hot sun of Italy. A creepy chill burned down her spine. The girl blinked a few times in order to see her uncut skin and her untouched blue veins underneath. With a gulp and a proud thought of 'not yet', she shook her head and threw her hair over her head. Bent over, she began to shake it and dry it in an attempt to detangle it and give it some natural volume without using combs or brushes.

In another apartment, the water was just being turned off. Light stepped out of the shower and dried himself, constantly thinking of the events of the past days. The two victims from Los Angeles were only discussed in the media because the criminal was unusual, the type that liked to create puzzles leading to his next victim. He had to be of the rare ones, those who are really twisted and frightening, the serial killers that inspire horror novels. But how many had died only in the past hours worldwide? How many crimes had been committed and had yet to be discovered, eventually tracked down to the day of August the 5th? And what about these crimes that are forgotten for so long, the criminal lives and dies unpunished?

His mind then went on Anastasia, as most of the world knew her. He tried to remember her last name, but couldn't think of anything right. But that was unimportant. What was more important was that for the sake of a rich and superficial woman, ten other people had been wounded and two were struggling between life and death in the hospital at that very moment. And how come the shooter had died in prison before his sentence was even judged? Was it a coincidence, or was it murder? Neither his father or the media seemed to know any details about the man's sudden death.

With a sigh, he looked through his closet. Caterina had a strange style – too elegant to be considered casual, but too casual to be considered elegant or fancy. He decided to try and match it, just for the fun of it. Classic jeans and a dress shirt were probably going to match her game for tonight… Of course, there was always a risk that she would suddenly show up in some pretty dress and heels just to humiliate him and look a thousand times better dressed, but he decided not to give the voice in his head the satisfaction of considering that possibility.

Before going to tell his father that he was going out, Light texted her again. It was 7:23, but she didn't reply for another ten minutes. At least, she had a reason for that – _'Sorry, I was drying my hair.'_ He knew from his mother and his sister that this simple thing could take women a long time and the hair driers were often loud enough to cover up the sound of a ringing phone.

 _'So we're still going, right?'_ he sent back with the only purpose of clinging to something that would help fight back his anxiety. The other voice in his head was always thinking of the possibilities Light didn't want to envision.

'Yea. Text me when you're here.' Caterina sent the message, then threw her phone on the bed once again. She looked at her dress shirts, some summery and light and others a little transparent and dark in color, with different prints and decorated buttons. Matching her dark gray jeans with a burgundy shirt, she threw her hair in a tall and messy ponytail. 'Do I look like her…?' her own question rang in her thoughts as she applied her usual eye liner and tried to conceal the dark circles under her eyes. Mascara was next, as she thought about the alternative. What if she had been born as a boy? Then Caterina, or her male self, wouldn't have had to go through the routine of painting his face. She stared her reflection in the mirror and tried to see herself with short hair and strong jaws, with a larger nose and taller cheekbones, with a larger forehead and smaller eyes.

Light shut his parents up by admitting that he was indeed going to meet with a girl. With how much effort they thought he put into studying, his parents believed him every time he said he had no time for a girlfriend, so they were glad to hear he was eventually acting a bit more like the boys his age. Secretly, both sides of him were glad that Sayu wasn't home to tease him about it and he used the opportunity to assure his parents that he did not have a girlfriend –at least, not yet- and that they still had many things to figure out before he could talk about 'us'.

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _Another fast update! Woo! And you should thank **ColdHeart1206** for writing a review. Remember what I told you, kids. Motivational trading! But no, seriously - I need to know what you think, what you like and what you don't. _

_Well, get ready for the New Year, whenever you may be celebrating it, as well as slower updates for the months of January and February. Exams are approaching me fast and I really need to focus on that, plus a few projects I've been avoiding for some time now. Anyway, I hope what I have already written is going to get us all through the winter and into that lovely spring break everyone is waiting for~ (or at least, I know I am!)_

 _Chapter not proofread by a beta, so if you see anything, please message me and I'll correct it. Seriously, pull my sleeve on typos and grammar. Please._

 _Also, don't forget to favorite, follow, **review** , message me, say 'hi', check my profile every now and then for some extra info, and drink responsibly. Or don't drink at all and drive your friends home. Everyone needs that sober friend, right? :D_

 _ **Update:** chapter proofread by the beta reader **Eat4Fun.**_


	13. XII - Smile!

_XII –Smile!_

* * *

The hot month of August was perfect for an outdoor photo shoot. And what better setting than the coast of Japan? Anastasia could pretend she was alright and Misa could have some fun after the session.

Thinking of it, Misa seemed to be having a ton of fun posing as well. She was natural in front of the camera and because of her body, she looked good in whatever was thrown on her. She had no requests and refused nothing when it came to hair or make-up – braids? Trims? Dye jobs? Heat treatments? She never backed down from anything, even if it was damaging or altering her overall image.

"Wonderful… Yes, that's it! Great! Hold it… Perfect!" the photographer kept encouraging Misa, as if she needed it. But if she didn't need it, she wanted it. The girl bathed in the positive feedback and warmth of the sun.

Anastasia was sipping a frozen drink with coffee, milk, and chocolate on the side, sitting in the shade with her platforms beside her and her white feet in the sand. Whenever someone approached her, she smiled brightly and tried her best to look as flashy and perfect as always, unaware that her perfection was in fact plastic.

The man in charge with choosing the pictures was assisting the session from a few meters away from Anastasia when the girl who was to take his place in another ten years was asking about it.

"Wow! She's so good at it…"

"Hm, yes, I suppose… We'll see that in a few hours." The man replied with severity.

"Ah…" the new girl said, trying to get the man's attention. He was in his early fifties, she was just out of school. "Samantha called from New York. She wants to know if you have looked over some pictures…"

"Yes, some pictures of the new models that she had proposed for this session. Anastasia saw them, as well. We both agreed none of her little girls will appear in the next issue."

"Oh! So, then… Do I call back and tell her 'no'?"

"Don't make me feed you to the models!" the man said in a half-jokingly manner, not once taking his eyes off the aspiring model. There were others more experienced than Misa all around her, but she had something energetic and sparkly about her, almost like a can of soda.

Anastasia smiled as she heard the threat. The models were known to be quite… mean, especially with outsiders and naïve little girls like the young journalist over there. They wouldn't literally eat her up, but they would most likely humiliate her and have fun while doing so.

Just then, Misa's session was over and the girl sighed happily, waving over to Anastasia. A few other girls glared at her shortly, some whispering to their friends. Anastasia replied with a more discreet wave, just lifting her forearm from the table. Misa ran through the soft sand with her high heels in one hand, smiling brighter than the sun. Despite preferring the deep purple, burgundy, and navy as her primary colors, she was very lively and fun. Anastasia liked that in her – Misa was the perfect distraction.

"How was that?" the natural blonde asked with a giggle.

"Wonderful, my dear. Having fun is the best you can do."

"Really? I just try to look natural."

"Most of the time, my dear, if it feels awkward – it looks awkward. If it feels good and fun, though…" the bleached blonde smiled softly.

"It looks good! Right?" Misa felt the need to complete the sentence.

"Exactly." The mother smiled.

The waiter asked Misa of her preferences, but was faced with the typical requirements of an aspiring fashion star – anything sweet, cold, and diet.

Just then, one of the models was heard screaming bloody murder. A few others followed her example, backing away in terror from a few rocks partially shaded by wild shrubs. The man in charge of supervising the session and later on deciding which photos were going to appear in the magazine hurried to see what was the cause of the panic. The photographers did the same.

"What's happening?" Misa asked, obviously alarmed.

"I'm not sure. Let's just stay here for now." Anastasia answered her in a lower voice, so the waiters could not hear her.

"Someone call an ambulance!" one of the photographers yelled.

"Call the police! Call the police!" another yelled.

The supervisor returned, all pale and covered in a cold sweat from his bald head to his sandals.

"Anastasia, you should leave. I apologize for my rudeness, but I doubt this place is safe."

"What do you mean? What about Misa?" the girl asked.

"What happened? You have to tell me." Anastasia demanded.

"Alright. There is a body between the rocks, possibly a swimmer. She is naked, from what I could see. But there are marks on her body." The man then turned to the woman's bodyguard. "Anastasia needs to get somewhere safe. You might be followed. Be extremely cautious," he instructed the other who nodded silently.

Panicked, Anastasia began breathing deeply, trying to remain calm and failing miserably. "A body?! Marks?! What kind of marks?" but before she could say anything more, she was escorted by her bodyguard to the car.

"Nooo! Don't leave me here! Misa wants to come, too. Can I? Can I? Please!" the girl began to plead. Her parents would need at least an hour to come pick her up and the thought of being on her own between strangers at a crime scene terrified her.

"Yes! Please, be my guest." Anastasia said and the bodyguard waited for Misa. He walked behind the two blondes, ready to pick up the guns he wore at his belt and shoot any possible threat. He had been trained not to wound, but to kill.

Once in the car, the bodyguard closed the door and sat in the passenger seat. The two blondes held each other and Anastasia felt tears coming to her eyes. Misa was only a few years older than her Rosa and in a way… holding Misa like that and feeling her clinging back was like a taste of the love she never received from her own daughter. The designer had to remind herself that the model was somebody else's daughter and that the moment was just that – a passing moment. She had to remind herself it will pass and there will be no way of preserving it. She had to remind herself not to get used to feeling love, because it was the reason of her downfall time and time again.

Misa clung to the other like they were the best of friends. In a way, Anastasia felt like the elder sister she always wanted, but never had. Misa glanced over the woman's shoulder and looked backwards, only to see a black car driving behind them. Its windows were dark, she had no idea who or how many were in the car… but many people disliked the sun, right? Perhaps there was someone in that car that had some really sensitive eyes.

"I'm sorry…" Anastasia said after a few moments, eventually letting go.

Misa sat in her seat with a little sigh. "And it's such a nice day…"

"I know, my dear. But we can go for some ice cream in a few days, maybe next week."

The girl shook her head. "Ice cream makes you fat."

Anastasia laughed in her soft, artificial way. "Not all kinds."

Just then, both girls jumped as Anastasia's phone began to ring. Once, twice, the ringing went on as she rushed through her bag, trying to fish her phone from between make-up, a scarf, some papers and many other things that the opposite sex has no idea can fit in a handbag. Eventually, she found it – only it had stopped ringing. Checking the number, she received another call just before she could return it. This time she answered immediately, her trembling hand pressing it to her ear.

"Y-yes, darling?"

 _'Where are you?'_ He sounded patient, but the woman knew better than that. The Dragon simply couldn't be calm and patient after she had failed to pick up the phone the first time.

"In the car, going home." She was sincere.

Misa leaned closer, trying to hear what the man was saying.

 _'Do not go there. Instead, go to Green Snake's. It's a bar, but you will not go inside. Instead, tell the guards you are looking for the Snake,'_ her husband instructed.

"The… Snake?" she repeated. "My love, what is this place? Why not just go home?"

 _'Listen to me, woman. You will do what I say and do it with confidence. If your doll is with you, send her home. This is private,'_ the man insisted from the other end.

"Honey? I'm scared. What's going on?"

"Signora? Where are we going?" the driver asked casually without stopping the car. On the contrary, he was accelerating.

"…Green Snake. I don't even know where that is!" she fumed.

 _'I need you to keep calm and look strong for once in your life. I cannot reach you in time. Instead, go there and tell them this – you are looking for the Snake. They won't ask anything else, I assure you. Sia? Are you still there?'_ her husband asked.

"Y-yes, I-I'm here." Anastasia got even more scared when she heard him using the short of her name. He only called her 'Sia' at his old bar in Italy.

 _'Do you know what you have to do?'_

"Yes… I think…"

 _'What do you do when you get there?'_ the man asked.

"Ask for the Snake." The bleached blonde was growing more agitated by the second as she began to breathe irregularly and her eyes clouded with tears. "Honey, I'm scared. There's someone with me and I can't leave her on the streets. Please, dear. Who is this… Snake?"

"Five minutes, signora," the driver announced.

As they turned a corner, the sound of a gunshot could be heard. Both women jumped, but the driver and the bodyguard seemed calm.

"Honey, what was that? Did you hear it?"

 _'Listen here, woman. I can't talk to you about this on the phone. Do you get that? Does your blonde head understand?'_ he hissed.

"Y-yes, alright."

 _'I have to go. Do what I told you and don't cry. You wanted to be seventeen again? Here's your chance.'_

Anastasia thought she heard a note of ironic amusement in her husband's voice, but she couldn't be sure. He had hung up before she had the chance to say anything else. The woman looked at the scared model beside her, already pale and on the verge of tears.

"We are here, signora. I will let you at the gate." The driver stopped for a moment in front of a very strange and dirty-looking bar. They were in the outskirts of Tokyo, a side of the city Anastasia had never seen.

Their bodyguard stepped out and opened the door. Anastasia stepped out, putting on her cold mask and looking like the typical bored and stuck-up uptown diva. She hid her eyes behind her black shades and pursed her lips in impatience.

"M-Misa is not going!" the girl announced.

The bodyguard closed the door and the driver smirked. "Good girl. No need for the drama, you know? I'll take you home for free, I'm sure signore Amadeo won't mind."

Misa nodded and attempted a weak smile.

"Want some gum?"

"What flavor?" she asked back, leaning forward.

"Cherry. But you can't make bubbles."

"That's alright." Misa smiled a bit brighter and the driver gave her a recently opened pack of gum.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _My, another review, **ColdHeart1206**? Guess I'll have to keep my word, so here's your update. Though you won't get to spy on Light and Caterina until chapter 13. Yes, that was intentional, and yes, this chapter is mostly a filler. But things are about to get a little heated... perhaps not in the way some fans may be expecting, but keep your eyes open for hints. _

_But make a little note on your calendar, because this chapter, Misa actually thought! *gasps* And made the right decision! ...Okay, okay, I'm just being mean. I know there are some Misa fans out there. Which reminds me... Some of these characters are so down the rabbit hole in the chapters I'm currently writing! *evil little smile*_

 _You know what? Here's another deal. Message me for one early chapter OR the chance to ask about any one character and how they will be doing in the near future. Don't you want to know if your favorite will be making it big or not? I know you do. Don't try to lie, I know you do! Who doesn't want to know if their favorite character will die or not? (And possibly, just possibly save them, how does that sound?) Happy holidays, kids, teens, adults and shinigamis!_

 _ **Update** : chapter proofread by the beta reader **Eat4Fun.**_


	14. XIII - White Elephant

_XIII – White Elephant_

* * *

Anastasia walked up to the first guard looking at her, ensured by her own bodyguard being half a step away. Fifteen years ago, she would have giggled and drank her way up to the owner of the bar. Now though, she had to look more professional. Although she had no details of her husband's business, she knew this situation was one of life and death and that she was on her own for a little while.

"I'm looking for the Snake," she hissed quietly, wrinkling her small nose slightly as the guard came even closer.

"Who is looking for him?"

"He knows." Yet again, Anastasia was betting all she had on a guess, trembling on the inside at the thought of the possibility that this Snake guy had not yet been informed of her arrival.

"What is your reason?" the guard continued.

When he reached for the woman's arm, her bodyguard grabbed the other's wrist and slowly yet firmly led his arm back down.

"To see the Snake." The woman pretended to be annoyed and bored and attempted to step past the stinky guard. Five others began to approach.

Then, right before her eyes, the guards began backing away. Anastasia's bodyguard had rolled up the sleeves of his black dress shirt, exposing a colorful dragon tattoo on his left arm. One guard of the bar called the intercom.

"Boss. A woman is here."

Anastasia couldn't hear any reply back, but a few seconds later an automatic door opened towards a flight of stairs. The guard gestured that she followed.

In the mean time, Caterina was just walking out of the elevator about five minutes after Light's text. He was waiting for her, leaning against the wall with his arms crossed. As soon as he saw her, he gave her a half smile. She was late, but he had expected it.

In return, she threw him a weak smirk, that combination of boredom and thirst for something exciting sparking in her green eyes. She had a way of looking at him when she wanted something that Light learned to recognize a mile away.

"So, where are we going?" she asked in a calm voice, talking slowly and trying to hide the storm in her flat stomach. Whether it was excitement or anxiety, she didn't know… perhaps a combination of both. Or perhaps it was neither.

"I thought we agreed to take a moment to relax." Light approached her, observing how she had left her heels for a pair of oxfords. Mentally, he was glad he had warned her about walking, though his darker side would have enjoyed to see her trying to hide her discomfort from a long-distance walk in some pretty but uncomfortable shoes.

"I only asked where we were going. I didn't mean it any other way." Her brows raised in surprise.

"Perhaps I'm becoming paranoid, then…" he chuckled, "With us constantly being at each other's throat…"

Caterina smiled and looked away, amused and annoyed at the same time. "As long as I get what I want, I couldn't care less."

"Right," he said with a small smile and offered his arm. Caterina accepted it after a moment of hesitation. "Are you, by any chance, shy…?"

"What's that? I don't know what you're talking about."

Light held back the voice from laughing out loud at her comment. "I see you a little hesitant."

"Tired, rather. Cautious, perhaps. But hesitant, never."

"You want me to believe you were being cautious a moment ago?" he asked as they walked down the street and towards the center of the city.

"Yes…!" she answered as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "People might see us and my father doesn't know about this."

"…So I am your secret now?"

Caterina smirked and detangled her arm from his. "You're right. I shouldn't risk anything more than I already am." She thought that would silence his purr, no matter how nice it sounded.

"We can go someplace quiet, without too many eyes on us. That, of course, if you want to…"

"I dress to be admired. Maybe you didn't understand this yet, I want to be seen. Besides, you promised me chocolate."

They both laughed quietly at this.

"I never used the words _'I promise'_ with you," Light defended himself.

"No, but it was my condition for going out. You agreed to go out after hearing my condition, so you agreed to the previous condition as well."

"…Very well, you caught me this time."

Caterina smiled sweetly up at him and Light noticed they were almost the same height. She was a little short, but no more than two or three inches.

"So, what's my prize?" she asked with a chuckle.

"Prize?" he repeated. "For just that?"

"That, and going out at this hour, and walking…"

"…And probably interrupting you from talking on the phone with some celebrities or drinking some organic juice and watching a film by yourself…?"

"Pretty much. Don't tell me you had anything better to do, unless…" she began, but stopped.

"Unless…?" Light knew she was probably going to pick on him, but curiosity made him ask anyway.

"Unless you have someone else to take out for some chocolate cake before bedtime."

"I don't, if it interests you." He shook his head slowly. "If you want to know about my life, just ask."

"So, I know about your family and that you're single. I wonder why, though… You seem daring enough."

"Daring? Is that the only reason you were expecting me to have a girlfriend?" he asked, honestly surprised and a little disappointed.

"Well, that is possibly the first thing to notice once someone starts talking to you."

"Do you like that?" he asked, walking by her side and leading her towards the center of the city, the few streets that were even more crowded by people and flashing lights.

"That what?" she asked after a short moment.

"Confidence, or to use your word, 'daring'. Do you like that?" he asked again.

Caterina looked at him with her eyes a little empty, as if lost in space. She blinked once, twice, then put on a smile that tried desperately to look bright. "I suppose."

"You suppose?" Light repeated in confusion.

"Yes. I don't need weaklings around me. Confidence is usually a trait of the strong and the fools. The latter won't please me, though."

The boy shook his head slowly and chuckled quietly to himself. "You're interesting… For a second, you looked so absent-minded… What's on your mind this time?"

"Honestly?" she asked and looked at him. "I have a bad feeling… It's not just V, there has to be something else…"

He nodded. "Is that all? Because I think there's something more."

The girl sighed and looked down, watching their shoes stepping together. "I have my own worries and doubts. We all do, it's what makes us human."

"So that's why you like confidence." Light's arm went around her waist and rested just above her hipbone. He had noticed how small she was, but didn't expect to be able to feel her bone structure through her clothes. He thought of a model… Yes, she would make a killer model, with that heart-shaped face and deep green eyes of hers.

"No. I am confident enough on my own. There are few who can tell me _'no'_ in this world and if they did, they wouldn't live to see tomorrow. I have no reason to be insecure."

"It's alright to feel insecure from time to time. It doesn't make you any less powerful, it's part of being human. You said so yourself, right?" he said with a smile as they turned a corner. There was music in the distance, muffled by the general murmur of the people who were out that evening.

"Only… In the race for power, insecurities are a sign of weakness. There are no possibilities, no maybes or perhaps. Either you win, or you lose… I never want to lose."

Light sighed and held her a little closer, until she leaned on his side. To anyone else, they must have looked like a couple. Her fake smile and his thoughtful eyes were the only signs showing their conversation wasn't all rainbows and white flowers.

"It must be really stressful… How is your mother, by the way?" the boy asked, trying to change the subject to something more comfortable.

"She's alright… Worrying about the latest issue. It's all the usual."

"I think I heard something from my sister. Is that blonde model still working with your mother? Her name escapes me."

"She is. Misa, I think… Anyway, she's a Loli. It's pointless to worry about her – as soon as people find another teenager in lacy underwear, her career will be over."

Caterina sighed and breathed in his scent. She tried to guess the fragrance, but couldn't. Either way, it was nice… strong, woody, clean. With a little effort, she could picture a young version of her father using it in Italy, back when the Dragon was just opening his first bar.

"She does look rather… easy." Light avoided expressing his opinion in some possibly inappropriate words.

"Mm-hm. But people like her, for some odd reason. Keep it between us, but she's not very bright either."

He chuckled and the girl smiled. "I can imagine she didn't have much time to study. Speaking of which… Were you home-schooled?"

"No…" she answered with a frown and looked at him curiously. "Why would I be home-schooled?"

Light shrugged. "I was just wondering. In the movies, many rich kids are."

"In the movies." She laughed. "I went to different private academies, but I never depended on my father to pass. He could buy me anything, but I've always had an ambition of gaining first place on my own. Where's the satisfaction if you buy your prize?" she asked with a wide smile.

The two entered a tea house and sat at the top floor. They occupied two seats at a long and thin table, overlooking the city. Under the table, the wall was made of glass, while above there was an open space. A thin border was set on guard, just in case anything on the table would be in danger of falling down.

"I can agree with you there. Only after a while, it becomes boring… You know exactly how much you have to work for first place and there's no thrill in winning anymore. You get used to being on top."

"I haven't gone to the same school for more than three years. I don't know that kind of boredom because changing the school meant new teachers and colleagues, and… well, new obstacles. That kept me interested."

A waitress set two menus in front of them and smiled politely. "Good evening and welcome!"

"Thank you." Light said.

"Wait. What kind of insult is this? The menu is stained, that corner is ripped and there's an ink mark over there. Is there mold inside, too?" she asked on a harsh voice and the waitress turned red of shame.

"I-I'm so sorry, miss! Please, let me bring you another!"

"Please. And hurry up, will you? It took you over a minute to see we've entered this place."

After the waitress had left, Light turned to Caterina.

"Was that necessary?"

"Probably not. But I'm used to the highest quality for anything. I could make her lose her job for less."

"You win nothing with that. It's late and I can bet she had been carrying trays for hours."

"I've heard… I won't inform anyone about it, but I want to scare her a little. Somebody else might just take the matter to her employer."

Light smiled in amusement and looked towards the street bellow. "So you do that to help her… Again, you don't win anything out of it."

The girl shrugged. "That's a risk. If she is scared, the waitress, then she is going to be ten times more careful with her clients – at least for a while. That, if she is a strong one. If, on the contrary, she is a weak one, then her shame will turn into clumsiness and it will be only a matter of time before she drops something, breaks it, or spills the tea on someone."

"You're very strict about this…" he began.

Caterina nodded and hummed a short "Mm-hm."

A few streets away, the driver had just dropped Misa off and watched her reach her home safely before he called the Dragon.

"Lolita is home," he spoke into the device as he started the engine.

'Good. Go to the penthouse and take everything valuable. Tell V. to pack Sia's work and pick up Rin.'

"Question. I believe Rin is out in town."

'Go after Rin and whoever else is there.' The order was clear and short, right before the driver smirked and mumbled a simple "Understood," right before he hung up.

"So tell me… In which category do I fit in?" Light asked as he turned to face her. The girl looked surprised, green eyes staring back into his brown ones.

"…You?!" she repeated, as if he hadn't phrased his question clearly enough.

The boy nodded. He thought his curiosity would be obvious, since Caterina always resumed people to being strong or weak. He waited patiently for her to continue.

Instead, she simply looked the other way, pretending to be fascinated with the orchids in the window of a house across the road. "I… am not sure. You're a very…" 'interesting' she thought, "…unique individual. I doubt I've met anyone like you before."

"Should I take it as an insult?"

"Take it any way you want. You confuse me, that's all."

The waitress returned with two new menus and Caterina pretended to be interested in the types of tea they were selling. Her hands went through the pages, feeling their soft plastic texture as her left nail trailed down the columns of options. Light had been waiting for at least three minutes of painful silence before he spoke again.

"I confuse you… In what way, to be more precise?"

"…Everything." She shrugged. "You seem weak and fun one moment, strong and not-so-fun-anymore the next. Just when I think I've got you figured out, you twist my logic several times."

Light simply smiled, though the darker voice in his mind was mad with laughter. _'You confuse her… You seem weak one moment, strong the next!'_

"I'm sorry…!" the waitress excused herself behind them, holding two wooden trays, each with a small cup and kettle. "Can I bring you anything else?"

"Do you have any chocolate cake?" Caterina asked.

Back at the penthouse, three men entered using a copy of the key only the members of the family held and began searching the house for anything valuable – jewelry, watches, electronics, paintings, sculptures, anything that could be sold. Anything not expensive enough ended up torn apart, on the floor or against the wall, smashed to pieces and destroyed in any way imaginable.

In Anastasia's room, a small bag of drugs got stolen, along with three chests worked in platinum and gold and filled with diamonds and emeralds. Three watches, many bracelets, an extra cell phone without the SIM card, a laptop. Under the bed, they found a small safe which they took as it was, not wasting any time trying to decode it on the spot.

Caterina's room was a surprise – they had been informed there only lived a married couple, no mentions of any children. They searched it anyway and took several pieces of jewelry, some money hid in various places – possibly for emergencies – and a laptop. They looked for safes or hidden places, searching through the girl's drawers and her wardrobe, but found no more valuables.

As the three men were ready to break into the last door which was locked and from which they didn't have a key, one of them got a message. It was a blank text – a signal that the whole thing had to be cancelled.

Half past eight when the ten began heading towards the only exit of the house. One of them saw a surveillance camera and shot it, well aware of the fact that they were perfectly covered in black from head to toe. There was no way they'd be identified by the police.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Did it feel longer? Because it is. Originally, was a different chapter before White Elephant, but I thought I should keep my word from the previous note and give you what **ColdHeart1206** had asked for - Light and Caterina. Because we all need a little sweetness in our lives, don't we?_

 _The robbery had been originally planned to happen in a separated chapter, but I squeezed it in this one. Keep your eyes open for details and you will see that everything makes sense in the end. Falling back into a cliche, it all happens for a reason._

 ** _Update: _**_First things first: chapter proofread by my awesome beta reader, **Eat4Fun.** Next update will be published only after I receive a **review** or at least a PM from one of you. You've been informed._

 _Ah, it's so nostalgic publishing these... I've got so many chapters already written, and things are going to be so crazy in the following ten chapters - I just love it. And it's so cute to see Light and Caterina on such good terms! Because people are going to die soon enough, and things will get hectic, and the world will burn, and L will make his first appearance for about two paragraphs~_

 _Come on, people! Help me publish all these chapters!_


	15. XIV - Trust issues

_XIV – Trust issues_

* * *

The butler was at the restaurant of a nearby hotel when he saw the car rushing down the street. Immediately, he rang the alarm. Not the typical one, but a simple blank text sent from a third cell phone. He would have to get rid of it as soon as possible and destroy the SIM card as well.

Sipping his wine, the old man nodded to the waiter that he was ready to pay. So, the stealth had to be cancelled… Hopefully, the three would have managed to take some valuables from the house by then – just enough to make the master of the house even more paranoid. That should create some tension between him and that little brat of a daughter he had – Caterina hated bodyguards. She loved privacy more than anything, but that may no longer be an option from now on. A sly smirk spread on his thin lips, lifting the corners of his mustache.

Meanwhile, the driver reached the penthouse just as another car was leaving the parking lot and speeding down the street towards the nearest highway. The man leaned forward over the board, but couldn't see the plate. How odd...

After parking and locking the car, the driver took notice of the silence all around. No guards – another highly suspicious thing. He thought about taking the lift, but changed his mind at the last moment and climbed up the stairs to the top floor. Once again, he was surprised to find nobody there to question him about who he was or what he was looking for. He eventually reached the apartment, but before he could put his keys out of his pocket, he saw that the door was not even closed.

Taking out his phone instead, he dialed a number he was said to use only in case of emergency or important news.

 _'What is it?'_ a deep voice answered.

"I have reached the place, sir, and I believe there are grave problems. Should I give you the details over the phone?" the driver asked.

 _'No… Meet me in an hour. Go find Rin first.'_

The Dragon hung up as soon as he gave the other his new instructions and the driver left running. Stairs were much easier this time, and he was in the car a few minutes later. But how could he know where Caterina was…? The girl left by foot.

Vincent left the restaurant and took a cab to the penthouse. He took the elevator, then called the Dragon.

 _'Yes…?'_ he answered, sounding annoyed – but that was only the usual. Giuliano was annoyed by his presence nine times out of ten and ignored him completely the tenth time.

"Sir, my deepest apology!" he began.

 _'What have you done this time?'_ came the question just as the elevator stopped with a faint _'Ding!'_ \- a sound Vincent prayed the Dragon had not heard.

"Robbers, sir! I apologize, I tried to stop them, but my old bones couldn't serve me like they had thirty years ago." Vincent continued to cry and whine into the phone. "They locked me in the bathroom, sir!"

 _'And why are you calling me only now?'_

"I was afraid, sir! They were many, I thought they would shoot me!"

 _'Incompetent little worm!'_ the master growled from the end of the line, _'If I find you had anything to do with this, you will wish they had!'_

"M-m-me, sir?!" the butler began panicking, "How could I? I'm just an old man, sir, your loyal servant! I have been working for you for twenty years, sir! I couldn't possibly think of such atrocity!"

 _'We will see about that. Now stop wasting my time with your pathetic cries!'_

Vincent watched the cell phone in his hand with such hatred and anger, one would expect it to catch on fire any moment. His thick brows furrowed on the bridge of his thin nose as he breathed out the thoughts of a murderer. Ah, but he didn't lie about one thing – he was old, his bones were no longer capable of keeping up with his mind. But his brain was perfectly well! He could have ran an empire with his brilliant ideas, even if he will soon need help sitting up from a chair.

Just then, the driver caught a glimpse of Caterina and her friend at the second floor of a tea house. So, he guessed right – the two went in the center of the city, the most crowded and diverse part of Tokyo.

For a moment, the driver thought he should tell Caterina to dye her hair black. They were in Asia after all, and red hair would make her too easy to spot. But then he thought, if it wasn't for that, he would have never found her. He smiled to himself and made his way through the crowd, running up the stairs of the tea house to reach her.

Caterina may be denying it, but the two looked very much like a couple. They were talking quietly and Caterina was using one of her hands to explain what she meant. It was rather common in Europe for people to use some hand gestures as they spoke to one another, but not in Asia.

Catching his breath, he took the liberty of sitting on the right side of the girl. This drew the attention of both teenagers at once.

"I apologize for interrupting, signorina."

The driver knew the family tolerated more from him than from anyone else employed to serve them. Whether or not the master of the house had told them about his origins, he had no idea. But he was by far the best seen.

"I suppose you have a serious reason for this." The girl knew he must have been sent by her father. She left clear instructions not to be followed.

"Yes, I do. Is it alright if we discuss the details in front of your friend?" the driver asked as Light's eyes were on him the whole time.

"How serious is it…?" Caterina asked, suspicious of how much Light should know.

"Your father asked me to find you and take you with me. We will be meeting him shortly." After years of being an insider, the driver knew how to answer a delicate question without leaking too many details.

"I can leave, if you wish. Maybe we'll go out next week, or whenever you want." Light offered. "If you have anything important to talk about…"

"…No, I don't think you should. Did father say I should go alone?" Caterina asked.

"No. But in case your friend here will come with us, he should know about confidentiality."

"My name is Yagami Light, sir. And I can assure you, I will not speak of this to anyone else." The teenager extended his hand and the driver shook it and bowed his head.

"Understood. Because of politics, I cannot give you my name."

Caterina was the first to stand from her seat. Her lower back was numb, just like her bottom and hips, but she waited patiently for the tingling sensation to go away. "Can we go now?" she asked and both Light and her driver thought of a spoiled child. Though neither of the two was bothered by this.

"Have you paid yet?" the driver asked. Light nodded.

"We have. Actually, we were just talking about leaving before you showed up, sir." He eyed the man with caution, not too fast to trust him.

"Alright then. I have left the car two streets away, I couldn't park it anywhere nearer. I apologize, signorina."

"It's alright. I have agreed to walk this evening, it won't be a problem."

The driver stood up as well and left the tea house, followed by Light and Caterina walking close behind.

"Is this a good idea?" Light asked in a low voice, thinking only Caterina would be able to hear.

"I don't know. But we'll find out, I guess." She threw him a small smile.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Ah, finally, my beta and I have caught up and I can give you another chapter, instead of updating the rest. Sadly, it's more of a filler-chapter since nothing really important happens, but lots of things will start happening after this robbery._

 _Again, I'm offering you the same chance I offered to my Mandala readers - if you want to save a character that you think may die, or if you ship any characters, you can PM me and I will consider it. You have chances of changing the plot, if it's not an extremely drastic change. Though with this story, I think you should think more about saving some of the characters, since there aren't many possible ships at the moment..._

 _As you know, this chapter was proofread by my beta **Eat4Fun** , who puts up with me every time I send a new chapter~ Yay for that. ^^' _

_And of course, the next chapter will be published after it is proofread and I receive a **review.**_


	16. XV - Family reunion

_XV –Family reunion_

* * *

The Dragon wasn't exactly pleased to see two teenagers stepping out of the car, once the driver had parked the car and opened the door. His eyebrows were trying to keep a small distance, frowning over the bridge of his nose and shading his dark eyes. On his left, Anastasia was playing her usual role, pretending to be bored and indifferent while hiding the cold shivers of fear that were racing up and down her spine.

As expected, the bodyguard was standing beside the weaker one of the couple. Anastasia didn't feel anywhere near safe, but she was constantly trying to convince herself nothing bad could ever happen to her. No… Her husband was the greatest danger in her life, and he wouldn't let anyone hurt her. No, that was his job – and he did it damn well. The woman was glad it was night time – hopefully, nobody would be able to see her eyes red in between the black and stiff lashes that outlined them. The cry she had stopped in her throat was numbing her head in hot waves of nervousness and superficial asphyxiation.

The driver had informed the Dragon of Light following them. The two had their way of communicating important details like this. Even so, the man still had a doubt of fear creeping up his nervous system. The Dragon was pissed, and that was never a good thing. He had never personally seen him like that before, but it wasn't difficult to picture what was going to happen next.

They had met in the suburbs, going into a dark and smoky restaurant. Light wasn't used to that kind of environment, and judging by how close Caterina was walking and how she seemed to be trying to get between him and the driver at all times, she wasn't either. Most of those at the tables were men and the women looked either like deranged assassins, or prostitutes… perhaps both. The boy was frightened to be descending into this hellhole – everyone around him looked like a criminal, the kind the police couldn't dream of catching… The kind that made the voice inside his mind shiver with excitement. His darker side would have loved to set a bomb into the restaurant and watch them all burn like filthy rats they were, disemboweled by the force of the explosion, dismembered or stepped over by their _'associates'_. That part of him was growing excited just by the thought of such an explosion… while his good side was honestly terrified of being there.

They claimed a table and Caterina sat a little too close to her father, the side of her body and one of her legs toughing the side of her father.

"Why are we here?" she asked first, breaking the uncomfortable silence.

The Dragon was staring at everyone in the bar, silently asking not to be interrupted. Those at the tables near theirs sat up and moved, or disappeared somewhere. Light wasn't sure of the restaurant's structure.

"Was it necessary?" the man asked her, mumbling his words and nodding towards Light. The boy froze, tempted to let his darker side take control.

 _'You can't deal with this kind of situations, you're too soft… Let me do this. You don't have to do anything, just sit back and watch. They won't suspect a thing.'_

"Yes. I trust him." Caterina leaned against her father's shoulder and his arm went over her shoulders. It was heavy, but she didn't mind that. It was safe.

"I don't." the man hissed.

"I can leave any moment, you see. It is only because of your daughter that I am here." Light heard himself saying. _'Relax… Let me take care of it.'_ the voice said inside his thoughts, and eventually, Light decided to give in – just for tonight. "My purpose was to see that she meets you safely, sir. I do not know your driver or other servants, so I decided it would be a better option for her if I came along."

All this time, Anastasia just looked at everyone around the table. "Can we keep family matters between family, and not share them with strangers?"

"As if you were the one to talk," Caterina bit back.

The head of the family ignored the short exchange of words between his daughter and his wife. Instead, he focused on Light. He was playing the caretaker card and it was painfully obvious… Yet, the man saw something recognizable in the teenager's image.

"If you wanted to leave, you would have left the moment you saw us." Once again, Anastasia was trying to shoo the boy away.

"But it is not my will that holds the power to decide, and correct me if I am wrong, but I assume neither is yours, madam."

Caterina watched Light and began to calm. Perhaps that answer would be enough to make her father see in him what she thought she saw – a part of the Dragon's younger self.

"My dear… This young man here claims to be worried for your safety. He is right about one thing – the decision is not his to take. Do you want him to remain among us?" he asked the girl. "Let me remind you, there will be consequences for at least one of you if he proves himself to have a loose tongue."

One side of Light was growing anxious and the other, furious. Caterina took a moment to actually think about it! Did it mean she was not completely on his side? Was she suspecting the presence of the darker voice inside Light's mind?

"Yes, padre. I understand. And I believe we can trust him with at least part of our family discussions."

Light's darker self was filled with both rage and power. He would have wrapped his hand around the girl's little neck and pulled out her words one by one, under the threat of breaking her neck like a little bird's. How could she not trust him completely? He had let her in on most of the details of his life – except one, but this was not something anyone should know. Still, he maintained a calm and serious exterior.

"Are you going to listen to your daughter for such an important decision?!" the woman asked in shock.

"Be quiet, woman. Do you underestimate my ability to deal with all possibilities?!"

Anastasia bit her lip and frowned, not daring to answer her husband. Instead, the driver cough in his fist, demanding attention.

"Sir, I believe there are other details we came here to discuss."

"Yes," Caterina agreed, "Do tell me everything!"

Light watched from his seat as the driver looked the Dragon in between the eyes. That was at least a sign of courage, if not something more… He was now wondering about the type of relationship this servant had with the head of the family, and of course, with Caterina. It was easy for this side of Light to see that Anastasia didn't really matter in the equation.

"The apartment had been robbed, Sir. I have seen a car with more men rushing down the street, no plate number and with a very fast and rather loud engine. The door was open and the hallway seemed ravaged. I did not enter – I called you immediately to announce there are some grave problems, Sir, and if I should give you the details on the spot."

Light noticed the calm and relaxed way in which the driver was speaking, almost as if all this was a game and he was reporting to a friend or close relative. The Dragon didn't seem the type of man who would allow close relationships to develop, though… so there had to be something deeper than what he was able to see.

"Was there anyone inside?" the man asked his servant, who simply shook his head. "Are you certain?"

"I have been there for two minutes, Sir. I heard no signs of a living person being inside."

The Dragon nodded, looking far away and deep in thought.

"What did they take? How many were they?" Anastasia rushed in with her questions, to which Light's darker self had to hold back from giving some sarcastic answer.

"I'm afraid I cannot answer, signora. I remind you that I had not entered the apartment and that the intruders were too far away by the time I reached the building."

The Dragon stood up and walked into a separated room. He seemed to be familiar with the place, Light noted. Though the fact that his daughter and his wife were so uncomfortable meant he only came here for business – from which the female family was excluded. The driver though appeared to be sharing a special bond with the other man… Just how exactly did he manage to get under his employer's skin? Light had to know, if he wanted to approach this rotting family in the future. Their influence could serve him well on his quest of doing something against criminals – the capital punishment becoming legal all over the world should prove a good first step. After that, the options will remain open.

Caterina sighed, as her mother kept asking the driver stupid questions that only proved the blonde had not been paying attention to his former explanations.

"Is this a usual sight?" Light asked, leaning closer to Caterina. She was approachable when her father was not around – he could even say she wanted to be approached.

"More often than I would like to admit." The girl rolled her eyes, then closed them completely for a few long moments.

"Are you tired?"

"Yes…"

"You didn't seem so half an hour ago."

To this, Caterina opened her eyes and looked at Light intently, trying to figure out what about him had changed. He smirked.

"Are you studying me?" she asked.

"Do not feel too special. We all do, it's in our nature. The strong sex will study the beautiful sex, each of us looking for his own interpretation of how you should all be."

"And what exactly are you looking for, pray tell?" The girl didn't like feeling under a magnifying glass. Immediately, her discussion with her father returned to her mind to haunt her. _'Am I weak… in your eyes?'_ She began asking herself what did the eyes of a man first see in a woman. Was it the face? Was it the long hair? It couldn't be the body – she was still rather flat – and many women would remain rather flat for the rest of their lives, but men still gave her attention. And it couldn't be the personality – they would first have to be attracted by something else in order to discover a woman's personality… right?

"Why would it interest you?" Light turned the question around in a second.

"You were studying me. So? What have you found?"

"Unless it is some form of attraction, it should not bother you. Are you going to ask every man who stares at you for more than two seconds about his findings?"

The girl hated the mockery in his tone. This wasn't the Light she liked, the one who took her out two hours ago. This was the one who replied to her text messages and made her throw her phone on the bed, debating if she should even bother to reply anymore.

"Perhaps. But I think you are not yet a man." Caterina leaned in her seat and crossed her legs.

"Just like you are not yet a woman, or powerful. Am I missing something…?"

The girl had to breathe in deeply and exhale slowly a few times just to calm down. Otherwise, the back of her hand would have crushed into the side of his face and she would have risked looking like her mother – with absolutely no self-control.

Just then, the Dragon returned.

"Padre…?" the girl asked, the only one allowed the right to do that.

"I have arranged for a different apartment. We will see it tonight. As for the other one, I will be taking care of it."

Caterina moved her legs closer to the couch, leaving enough space for her father to take back his seat, but the man did not. After a moment, Anastasia stood up as well.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Is peace going to return into our story? Or will something else happen and throw everything into chaos? How is Vincent involved with the robbery? Find out in the following chapters! Or you can send me suggestions and expectations to consider. Who knows? Maybe you could save the life of one of the characters!_

 _So don't forget to **review** and PM me, follow and favorite!_

 _Chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun** , as usual. _


	17. XVI - Confessions

_XVI – Confessions_

* * *

"So, how much did you pay?" the girl asked and Light rolled his eyes.

"For the sake of our mother, I will pretend I did not hear you." Light replied while taking a seat in his chair.

"Oh, please! I don't expect you getting a date! So, how much?"

"Sayu? What are you insinuating?" the woman turned towards the two siblings. She was currently frying some eggs for breakfast. The head of the family had already left for work.

"You know… Girls of the night… company… friends with benefits maybe, though I doubt anyone would want Light to-"

A long sigh escaped Light as his weaker side was growing irritated and his stronger side was starting to show.

"Whatever the case, you should be the last one concerned about such issues. But just so you will stop rambling this nonsense, here." Light pulled out from his pocket the bill from last night. It was half the truth or less, but it was all his family had to know.

"White Elephant?" the girl read out loud.

"That's an old and very well known tea house. I remember it was my favorite when I was in high school." Their mother smiled over her shoulder, setting the breakfast on three different plates.

"That's what I thought." Light agreed, feeling calmer just from the third person there taking his side.

"So you _did_ manage to get a date?!" Sayu exclaimed as they all sat down. "Is she another nerd?"

"Sayu…! Don't be so mean to your brother. He works very hard for his grades. If only you put half as much effort into school…!"

"But _mom_! I don't want to stay in my room all day and study stuff that I won't be using in everyday life. Why do I need to know what happened five hundred years ago? Or math? Or chemistry? I'll never use any of that!"

"Precise sciences will develop your brain…" _'which you sure seem to need sometimes.'_ Light continued mentally.

"Blah! Talk normally, will you?" the girl asked, to which Light only smirked. "Who is this girl? She doesn't seem to have much taste…"

"On the contrary. She is the daughter of that designer you've been talking about for the past two months." Light pointed it out like it was nothing, but managed to get a gasp of surprise out of his little sister.

"Anastasia?! _No_! You're _lying_! I don't believe you!" The girl's eyes went wide as she let her fork down. "Anastasia's daughter! How on earth do _you_ know her, of all people?!"

"So how is this girl?" their mother asked in a much calmer tone. She was a little confused about her daughter's reaction, only having understood that the girl was the daughter of some designer… One of those who make money out of drawing skirts and shoes too expensive for most people.

"We happened to meet and she was in need of some guidance." Light began answering one question at a time. "She is Italian," he said while looking at his mother, "just learning Japanese."

"How do you talk, then?" Sayu jumped in.

"In English. We are both fluent in English, so talking isn't a problem. It's a little more difficult with our schedules though."

"How so?" his mother continued.

"But she refused being a model. What does she have to do now?" Sayu spoke at the same time.

"Yes, she refused. In fact, she doesn't have a close relationship with her mother. Caterina tries to keep out of the flashlight as much as possible-"

"Caterina? What a pretty name."

"Wait! Wasn't her name Rose?" Sayu frowned in confusion. She envied the girl, of course she read everything about her.

" _Rosa_ , actually. But that's her middle name, the one her mother prefers." Light clarified, growing more annoyed with each of his sister's questions. Were all women this chaotic in thinking, or were they just naturally designed not to think at all?

" _Rosa!_ " Sayu mimicked him. "What, are you learning Italian now?"

Light chuckled, taking the opportunity to state his superiority. "I just might. I haven't been thinking about it yet, but it could be an option for the next year's summer. I will be busy with school soon, but during summer break-"

"You could just live your life and go outside and swim and get fat on ice cream and ice sodas, but _no_ , the all-healthy genius is too cool for ordinary summer stuff!" Sayu huffed.

"Want to bet on that?" Light raised an eyebrow at her, to which their mother chuckled.

"Now, now. I'm sure you could learn Italian and still have enough free time next summer, right?"

Light gave his mother a nod, as Sayu looked at the clock and turned pale. "I'll be late!"

The other two looked at her strangely. "Late for what? It's Sunday." Light pointed out.

"OH! Right… Um, yeah, I forgot." The girl gave them a goofy smile and sat back down. "Thought it was Monday for some reason…"

In a different side of the city, a not-so-different family was sitting down for breakfast as well. The two avoided each other's glance as they served their preferred version of low-fat food.

"Have you looked through your things yet?" Anastasia asked her daughter while picking at her salad.

Caterina nodded. "Have you?"

"Yes… My jewelry is gone, along with-"

"I didn't ask." Caterina cut her off. "What did Padre say? Do we involve the police?"

The woman swallowed a cube of tomato almost whole, trying not to show how deeply her daughter's words cut. "He didn't say. Probably…"

Caterina wrinkled her nose like a kitten and looked away, then drank some more of her fruit juice. "I didn't ask for you either, Vincent."

The old man walked in, looking surprised on the outside and boiling with anger on the inside. "I'm sorry, signorina…? I was simply passing by-"

"For the past thirst-seven seconds." Caterina cut him off while throwing a quick glance at the clock hang on the wall of their new kitchen.

"I apologize. I was sincerely concerned for you, signora, signorina-"

"As if." Caterina rolled her eyes.

"Vincent?" Anastasia began, "Please, tell me what happened. How many were there?"

Although Caterina had lost her trust in their butler last night, she was still interested in what he had to say. The best of lies were always partially true – it made them more believable.

"There were many, signora-"

" _How_ many?" the girl interrupted him again, demanding exact details instead of vague beating-around-the-bush.

"I don't know! I only saw three, but there might have been more. They walked right in, young mistress. There wasn't anything I could do."

"Are you alright now, Vincent?" the blonde asked, only to be shooed out of the conversation by her daughter.

"What were you doing when they entered the house?"

"Are you looking to accuse me, young mistress?" the butler began whining. "A poor, old man like me?"

"The liar is the first to call everyone else a liar. What were you doing when the thieves entered the house?"

"I was in the hallway, signorina. I was going to change the towels when they burst through the door and threw me in the bathroom and locked me there."

Anastasia saw the cold sweat and the frown on the butler's face, but failed to read it as fear. Instead, she thought it was a side-effect of the shock her loyal servant had lived.

"Rosa, my dear. Don't you think this is a little too much? You might give him a heart attack." Anastasia intervened. Immediately, Vincent caught on and began playing the victim yet again, having the woman offer him a seat and some cold water.

All this time, Caterina began putting together the pieces. She might have finally gotten the evidences she needed in order to rid herself of that traitor of a servant playing with her mother's mind. Perhaps she should have agreed to that bet after all…

The girl let her empty glass in the sink and threw the straw away, then went to her room to change. She picked a pair of black jeans and a white lace top with black stripes, as she tied her hair up in two buns.

 _'Got him'_ she texted none other than Light.

 _'Got who?'_ he replied a few moments later, then stood up and helped gather the plates from the table.

 _'V. I got him.'_

But Light hasn't received that text on time. It must have been five minutes or more until his phone showed him the message, so by the time he asked her _'How?'_ , he received no immediate reply.

The butler on the other hand was getting just the reply he was hoping from Anastasia.

"Yes, what a splendid idea! I should have thought of this earlier."

"If it would be alright, signora, I believe it may help you unwind and serve you well in your recovery after the recent events."

"I will tell my husband as soon as I can reach him." Anastasia smiled weakly, but her eyes gleamed with hope and excitement. Perhaps for once things could go according to plan. There couldn't be any harm in a little relaxation off the shore, right?

At the other end of the line, Light sighed and let his phone on the bed. Yet another missed text arrived at the wrong time. The teenager had already thrown his shirt over the device, going through his closet for something to wear for the day. If Caterina didn't want to answer his questions, he would go and pull the details out of her mouth with a little more manipulation and perhaps some chocolate cake.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Yet another filler, this time written for the sake of annoying Light with dumb questions and exaggerated reactions. Don't get me wrong, I like the character, but... what's writing without a little fun?_

 _On the other hand, the second half of this will be a little more relevant. Hint: watch out for the texts between Light and Caterina. Also, I'd keep my eyes on Vincent if I was Anastasia... Hopefully I didn't reveal too much and you will only get it at the right time, in the next one or two chapters._

 _So, here! Another chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun,** only released before a review out of kindness. (Nah, actually I just don't want you to forget this story is still active and on-going. Yes, I do hope I managed to boost and crush your ego in two phrases. Have a nice day.) _

_Oh! I almost forgot. This is your last chance to guess who will soon be visiting Hades and your last chance to save them. Or let 'em burn in hell, who cares?_


	18. XVII - Secret Randez-Vous

_XVII – Secret Randez-Vous_

* * *

There were few things more boring and irritating than listening to the same two people talking about the same things, making the same mistakes, living the same arguments over and over. It was why Caterina refused to spend any second more than necessary between her mother and her butler. Her mother's, actually – the girl had to get used to correcting her mind from repeating a habitual but not very accurate sentence. The only purpose that butler ever had was to entertain her mother and distract her from her misery and loneliness. Yet, when her mother's servant brought up his 'brilliant' idea – and her mother agreed to it! – she felt her stomach turning. How stupid can lonely women be?! Because that's what her mother was.

 _'Yes,'_ her mother said without even thinking, _'what a splendid idea! I should have thought of this earlier.'_ Caterina heard the enthusiasm of an ill person receiving a permission to go through the hospital's yard for the first time in weeks.

Throwing herself on the bed, the girl gave a speech to whatever entity was out there listening about just how incredibly idiotic someone had to be in order to trust the idea of a proven liar. Why?! If he was lying about the robbery, and if he was playing victim, then he should have a good reason for that. And if it was in his advantage to lie, it meant he was anything but a victim. And so…

But Caterina stopped in the middle of her mental monologue once her phone buzzed. Picking it up, she saw Light's name on the screen.

 _'Can I come over? Or do you want to meet somewhere?'_

Light's brows raised in surprise when he read her answer. He would have expected her to pull him into a crowded café, but instead, Caterina was asking him how much it would take for him to reach her. An unexpected but very welcomed change.

Caterina then walked out of her room and gave Vincent a long shopping list. The old man would have to fly in order to return with everything on the list in the following three hours, while her mother… well, she was just unimportant. The girl didn't see her, so she assumed the blonde to be in her room, possibly sketching her next collection or napping. Or perhaps she was watching another one of her soap operas. Either way, the auburn-haired girl would have more than enough time and space on her hands.

She threw herself in the armchair she had facing the glass wall and the city bellow, looking at her phone to see the time. Light said ten minutes, so by now he should be already in the building or maybe just waiting for the elevator. She had one foot hanging from the knee over the arm support and was bending her back over the other.

Anastasia heard. Of course, it would be a little difficult not to – Vincent didn't have the quietest voice, and so his frustrated mumbling could be well heard from just a few meters away. Not necessarily understood, but heard. Obviously, Rosa had something else scheduled for the day. She didn't often send Vincent away, even if Anastasia thought her daughter would have loved to do it more often. Yet, it wasn't her problem. No, her problem was different. Her problem was that she had swallowed the last pill in the morning, just before sunrise, and the closer the evening, the more it began to wear out.

In the mean time, just as the butler was grumbling and complaining about his task, Light walked right past him and entered the building. For a moment, he felt tempted by greed. How did it feel to live in such luxury your entire life, when others couldn't even dream of one night in such an expensive hotel? The girl refused a bet she seemed ready to make the moment he asked her to live with him and his family for a few days. The thought of not having servants and a breath-taking view must have been too much. Light found the thought amusing, but sad at the same time. It was tragic… It was people like her who ruled the world, with no idea of the lives most people lived. _'You're here for a different reason,'_ the Voice reminded him as the elevator opened its metallic doors silently and Light stepped in.

By the time he reached the last floor, Caterina had just finished her makeup – nothing too eye-catchy, just a small color correction and some longer lashes. She let down her wavy hair on one side as she went to open the door. Light hadn't rang any bell, he had sent her a text. It was a more subtle way of letting her know he was there – and really, everyone did that, right?

"My, that was fast," she said with a smile, skipping the useless greetings. They were talking most of the time anyway, so it was pointless to waste her breath on 'hello's and 'how are you'.

"I suppose you could say that I just couldn't wait."

Chuckling, she stepped away from the door and let him enter their newest apartment. Caterina considered it to be her father's and hers in equal measures, while her mother simply didn't exist in the scheme.

"And why is that? What's making you so anxious?" she asked, moving towards her room and waiting for her guest to take off his shoes.

" _'_ _Anxious'_ wouldn't be the best word for how I'm feeling, but truth is, I was curious. _'Impatient'_ , rather." Light followed her, while looking around. He passed through a large living area, the kitchen was to his right, behind glass doors, and then there were several wooden doors. "Is anyone else home?"

"Mother…" the girl answered, her smile fading for a moment. "So, what's gotten you so _'impatient'_?"

"Your messages. I thought since you were in no mood to answer me, I'd take the freedom to come over and ask."

The girl chuckled in both amusement and surprise. "Really? Didn't I reply?"

"Did you?" Light asked her in return, raising his eyebrows teasingly at her. As they were entering her room, the girl picked up her phone from her bed and showed him a sent text about V. and the way she 'got him'.

"I think. I mean, I could have just imagined it, but then why does my phone agree with me?" she asked him in return, mimicking his fake sense of surprise. To Light, she seemed in a really good mood. After all, she seemed to be enjoying playing his games with him.

"Ah, I didn't see that one… But I don't suppose your manners are going to let you throw me out now, am I right?"

Turning towards her tall windows covering one full wall and half of the other, Caterina threw him a look and a smirk. "Don't give me any ideas…" In her mind, she would have continued her phrase with an at least half-ironic _'sweetheart'_ , but being in front of someone made things a little more difficult than talking on the phone.

"You do realize I'll be dragging you along, right?" Light asked in a serious voice, making her turn her attention back on him. "I can't return to hell empty-handed."

Caterina ran her hand through her auburn locks and threw them to the side, chuckling but still not completely convinced that was a joke. "As if."

"A sweet little angel like you might earn me a raise," he continued with a smirk, moving on and sitting in a leather armchair. Light let his hands feel the texture – it was the real thing, high quality leather which had its specific feeling and scent. He loved it.

Suddenly, it became clear why Caterina loved the top floor of the tallest hotels available. He glanced over the entire city, watching as everyone bellow had turned into fleas. For a moment, Light remembered a singular episode from his childhood in which he had spent a few hours burning ants with a magnifying glass. He remembered the feeling – he was above, they were bellow, unimportant and helpless - at his mercy. The Voice in his head had been the one who suggested that magnifying glass experiment long ago, and it was the one trembling with excitement from this strange feeling of power.

"My dear, I won't earn you any raise. If there is a devil, I'm his princess and successor. But it's cute you think I'm an angel."

Caterina was behind him, leaning over the back of the armchair. Her dark red hair was reaching down to Light's shoulder and he caught her scent again. It was a warm and woody scent, with some flowery accents – cinnamon, amber, roses, possibly mosque or… what was that? There was something he liked, something subtle but powerful and almost royal. In fact, Light was certain there had been a queen somewhere who wore a similar perfume. There had to be – this one was feminine, but not sweet like those girls and princesses often wear. It was almost bitter.

"Haven't we already agreed to avoid such struggles of power?" the good side of Light said, though the Voice was still present. The latter agreed it would be better to test just how much influence he had on Caterina.

"We have… But you've taken my seat," she whispered in a tone of amusement.

"I can see why you like it, but isn't leather rather… cold?" the Voice commented. His question wasn't really about the leather armchair, but rather about everything surrounding her. From a materialistic point of view, she had been spoiled like the little princess she thought she was… but material things are cold. They feel nothing and return nothing but her reflected image.

In the mean time, Anastasia was getting ready to leave. After a rushed shower, the blonde put on her makeup and made sure it would stay in place for the following eight hours or more. Dressing up in lace and silk, she threw on an A-line dress and held it close to her waistline with a thin hot pink belt. She threw her hair in a tall ponytail, pushing a little volume at the top of her head in a retro Barbie girl style that fit her so well, then messaged her beloved. In less than five minutes, she was sneaking out the door and into the parking lot. Anastasia didn't need a driver, she could handle it herself. And besides, the less people knew about it, the better.

Caterina didn't. She was too busy trying to figure out Light, of course she didn't hear her mother sneaking out. That had to be the last thing on her dizzy mind, all caught up in Light's strange games. The girl walked in front of him, arms crossed over her chest and a wannabe pout slowly turning into a half smile.

"I know what you're trying to do, but you won't."

"What have I done?" the good side of Light asked with a look of sincere and innocent confusion.

"You're trying to get me, but it's not going to work." Her index dark red nail pointed towards him, but Light only chuckled.

"Why would I try to get you?"

Just like that, her smile fell into a shock for such a short moment, Light might have missed it in a blink. She turned on her heels and approached the glass wall, looking out the window.

"Right. Why would you? There's no reason." She answered him in a sharp tone, obviously feeling rejected in the worst way. The girl had no idea how weak she was becoming, perhaps it was why she didn't make any effort to hide it.

The darker side of Light found her reaction rather amusing. It was exactly what he had been hoping to see – a clear confirmation of his guess. Standing up quietly, he approached her and wrapped his arms around her, once again amazed by her small waist and how easily he could feel her hip bones and rib cage.

"I already got you," he mumbled in a low voice.

Chills sparked down her spine and the little hairs too fine to be seen stood up on command. Why was he doing that? Caterina thought of how weak she must be in his eyes. Her mother did the same when she didn't get what she wanted - she gave up and pouted. But this time, she didn't even realize what she had been doing. That was her mistake, when she deliberately stepped into the trap.

"You've got nothing, much less me."

Half a step and a little bit of force and Light had her caught between the thick window serving as a wall and himself. "Oh, but it sure looks different to me."

Light's two sides were on the same frequency. Although Light wouldn't have dared to do this, he didn't disagree or tried to stop his other half from taking over. The situation was opposite, actually. They could both agree it felt good to see the girl in such a tight situation… literally.

Embarrassed and angry from this sudden change, Caterina tried to turn towards him and push him off, but her lack of physical strength worked against her. It didn't take Light more than a few seconds to hold her wrists in his hands and back against the glass, his body holding her in place. For a moment, a scene from a film came to her mind when a man leaned against a window alike to hers and the glass gave in, sending him in the crushing embrace of gravity and eventually, into a puddle of blood on the asphalt.

"What exactly do you think you're doing?"

Light wondered if he should stop… He could read fear, panic and anger in her green eyes. It wasn't what he wanted, but his other side was enjoying the outcome. "Your tongue isn't as sharp anymore. What's the matter, Cat? Are you afraid?"

His eyes went to her neck, watching her pulse under her thin skin.

"In your dreams, darling." In a moment of confidence motivated by the pure horror of appearing weak, Light felt her muscles relaxing in his grip. She was no longer struggling to free her hands, no longer making any effort to get way.

"In my dreams, you are a little different. You disappoint me, kitty Cat. You're too pretty when you're scared, panicked… When your heart is pounding in your throat…" Lowering his glance on Caterina's neck and collar bones, he leaned down and spoke against her neck. "You're beautiful when you're so weak."

"It's you who is the weak one." Caterina tried her best to make it sound like a threat, but her legs were getting numb and her skin was crawling with little unwanted chills from his hot breath on her cold skin.

"Is that so?" Light smirked against her skin, not loosening his grip on her wrists the entire time to the point her fingers began to go numb. "How am I weak, if you don't mind? …But I think you won't mind answering me, since you don't really have a choice… 'sweetheart'," he mentioned, using Caterina's favorite pet name.

Her blood began to boil, slowly but surely making its way to her cheeks and clouding her mind. Every nerve in her body was a spark of electricity, as she rejected the situation and tried to fight it. "If my daddy finds out-"

"'If', yes… But he won't. You won't tell him, because you like it."

Frowning, Caterina began to tense again, struggling helplessly to push him away. "Would you get the hell off of me?!" she almost shouted, her pale red eyebrows frowning in rage and her heart pounding in panic and something else that she wouldn't admit.

Once his good side saw the chance, he backed away with the most heartbreaking expression of hurt and apology his innocent face could manage. He sighed to himself and let go of her wrists, taking another step back and standing at an acceptable distance from her. His eyes seemed sincere. In fact, Caterina was almost terrified of the sudden change, almost like a switch had been turned back on and suddenly, he was himself again… Or not? Who was he, anyway? The mean one taking any chance he could see, pulling her into traps and twisting her words, or the one staring back at her in hurt and regret?

"…I was right, then…" he began, as his darker side was pulling the strings. "I should've known. A girl like you could never look at someone like me." His eyes went from her to her side, as he was distracting himself with the breathtaking view of the city.

For a long moment, Caterina simply stood there in shock, unsure of what she should believe. If her understanding was correct, Light was trying the sea with his finger- no, that sounded wrong. He wanted to see if she felt anything… Did she? Her heart was screaming something in her thoughts, but she had long agreed with herself it would be best to ignore its constant bugging.

"It's… not what I mean, I just…"

Light shrugged and put on a broken smile, turning towards the door. "Don't worry. Well, I guess I'll go now."

"…I guess. But I didn't mean that, I just don't like you controlling me-" she tried again, as Light was taking his time crossing her room.

"I'm sorry if it seemed that way. I don't want you to see me as weak, because I'm already too poor for you. So… I thought I'd have a chance if I appeared strong, 'daring' as you've put it. I didn't want it to feel like I'm controlling you, I just thought you liked that."

Faced with such blunt honesty and his big brown eyes, the girl swallowed her pride and ran into his arms. "I don't care of what you have, I already have more than enough of dead, inanimate… cold objects…" she mumbled, eventually answering his question from a few minutes earlier. That leather armchair was terribly cold, and so was her room, with the fur-like carpet and laminated floor. She had already been spoiled by her father in all the ways money could spoil her, but sooner or later she knew it will no longer be enough.

Faced with such clear victory, the darker side of Light began to smirk. The girl was clinging to his back, pressing her body against his, so he wrapped her in a tight embrace and began rubbing her small back. The one who labeled everyone as weak or strong was herself one of the weakest, even if she tried to present herself as strong. She was weak mentally for believing him. But then, it could only mean one thing. He had her.

Caterina noticed. He was manipulating, he was turning her words against her, he was proving her just how weak she could be. She hated it, she despised it, but she didn't hate him. She was more tempted to direct her hatred towards herself for allowing him to turn her into her mother.

"Wouldn't it be better if we simply were…?" he asked in a low voice, still holding her and with his chin over her head. "Without any judgments and struggles, without labels… without irrelevant fights…?"

"Mm-hmm…" she agreed, "but I think I hate you. I don't get you. You confuse me."

Light pulled away enough so he could look at her, and when she refused, he turned her face towards his with his hand.

"I'm sorry. I never meant to make you feel bad in any way, I just wanted you to give me a chance. There's not much I can offer you, after all…" Although the darker side of him was well aware of what was going on, he still meant every word. Yet, Caterina wasn't really convinced that she should trust him.

The girl looked away again, taking a step back. She crossed her arms and sighed. "This isn't going anywhere. Soon, we'll be at each other's throats again."

"That doesn't mean we'll be holding knives…" At the moment, neither of the two could tell for certain if it was Light or his darker self that spoke.

"Then…?" the girl asked. For once, she was afraid of the answer, but damn curious to find out. Suddenly, his text messages returned in the back of her mind. 'Curiosity killed the Cat… Is the kitty sure she has eight more lives to waste?'

"I can hold yours and you can hold mine," his darker side spoke in such a calm voice, Caterina failed to notice the change.

Taking advantage of that, but also being more cautious, Light's hand went around her neck. He felt her swallowing her saliva, then slipped his hand under her hair. With just enough force so he wouldn't scare her away, he pulled her back in his arms, his other hand going from her waist to the low of her back.

Shorter than him, Caterina reached for the collar of his shirt instead and pulled him down. In the back of her mind, she knew he was bending down over her, but she wanted to believe she had the necessary force to drag him to her level. Her hands went from his shoulders to his neck as she traced her fingers over the main veins pulsing under the skin. "And now?" she asked in a low voice, afraid of talking too loudly as if it would have some catastrophic effects.

Anastasia was asking herself the same question once she saw herself in the Green Snake's office. And now… what? He was smoking as usual, taking his time smirking and scanning her body. Would he ask her to dance? The blonde was worried that she might have lost her flexibility and grace after the pregnancy. She also worried that she was no longer as pretty and doll-like as she was when she was seventeen.

"I have the money. Look, we both know why I'm here, so why don't you just give me what I want-" she began, only to be stopped by a long trail of smoke blown her way. The Snake sat up from his chair and walked towards her.

"My dear, I think we've agreed to some other services… haven't we?" The man was circling her like prey.

With that single phrase, Anastasia's mouth was sewed shut. She had agreed to do anything he asked of her, as long as it happened there and remained between the same four walls. She began to feel strange, the only spot of white in a black, green and dark brown world.

"Why don't you leave this white beauty out of the way? We wouldn't want it burned, no?" The Snake moved his cigar dangerously close to Anastasia's dress. Without complaint, she undid the little belt and reached behind to undo the zipper of the dress.

"Oh, don't give me that look, doll face. I'll give you what you want, but before that, you're going to give me everything you've got."

Going over to an old-fashioned pickup, he put on some old music, the kind that Anastasia had grown up listening back in her parents' living room. He didn't need to voice his request – Anastasia already knew the Snake had no need of her. The one he wanted was Sia, her old teenage self with no self-esteem or living feelings, the one that spent her nights in bars and danced until she got too drunk to remember what happened. Years later, she couldn't recall any other morning besides when the Dragon decided to spare her.

"And now…" Light mumbled, leaning in towards his red-head. Caterina saw more than enough films filled with scenes like that to not guess what was going to happen, but she never actually lived one. Trying her hardest to shake off the panic, the girl kept her hands around his neck and pulled him closer.

The Voice in his head was the one in charge – the other side of Light would have shied away from this. But his other half had no such useless feelings like shame or fear. He had already made Caterina confirm his power over her against her will, he had no thought of rejection left to hold him back. Pressing his lips on hers, he pulled her in and lowered his arm from her back to her hip. While Light was more than happy with just that, the Voice wanted to see again just how much she would allow him.

But perhaps for once, there would be a no in a long row of yes. As the teenager tried to feel the base of her spine through her clothes and played with the edge of her shirt, he felt a slight pain on his neck. Caterina's hands were still around it and one of her nails was threatening to pierce his skin, did he dare to continue. Instead, he kept his hot palm counting the vertebrae of her spine, losing count and starting again. A moment later, the pain was gone and he could feel her thin fingers relaxing in their hold of his neck.

The girl leaned back and let out a hot sigh against his lips, relaxing one arm and letting it hang from his shoulder. Her green eyes stared into his and Light thought it was the first time since they've met he had caught a hint of fog, some strange and unusual mist. For once, it was difficult to read her.

"My question is still valid…" she mumbled in a much less demanding voice, simply stating the fact.

Light chuckled, deciding this would be better in order to keep her in that less threatening state. "Now… I guess I haven't planned this far. I thought you'd send me away in handcuffs before I had the chance to hold you."

"Well, obviously I didn't."

"I think I can get a pair from the station the next time I'm helping."

The fog cleared the moment Caterina understood his 'joke' and her blood began boiling to her cheeks again. Light on the other hand was growing more comfortable and shameless around her, seeing how she failed to set any strict borders between them.

"I'll pretend I didn't hear you." Her arms went from around his neck to his shoulders, pushing against him in order to reach a safe distance.

"So you're no longer waiting for me to arrest you?" he asked in a playful tone, throwing back her words from earlier.

"I thought you were waiting for me to surrender," the girl tried to turn the situation around.

"We both know that was only a joke meant to pass another moment, to kill another second…" Light looked at her with a smirk. "I could take over the world before you surrendered," he continued on an amused tone.

"At least we can both agree to that," Caterina mumbled with a half smile. "I won't ever surrender, and you won't ever rule the world."

"How can you be so sure?" he asked in a low voice. "Perhaps I will, one day."

"Then, here's your answer. The day you rule the world, you'll have me." Caterina began to smile with a bitterness of a loser and the nostalgia of her mother. "I will finally surrender. Because we both know both of these scenarios are just as improbable."

"Don't get so caught up in all this," Light chuckled. "It may be improbable, but keep tempting me and I'll build up the ambition to actually do it."

"Oh, really?" she mocked him. "And what else do you want to be promised in order to try? Or more importantly, how will you even attempt it?"

"I don't know… Your daddy's precious fortune and connections would be a good start, don't you think?"

The girl began to laugh and so was his lighter side. However, the Voice was already trying to draw the lines between these first few objectives. He was taking it seriously.

"You'll have to get there on your own. After that, we can negotiate. But tell me one thing… hypothetically, because I might die before you rule the world…" This time, she looked away but didn't repeat the mistake of turning her back on him. "What would be the first thing you did?"

Without even thinking, Light's both sides responded at once. "Reform it. Clean it, reorganize it, make it a better place."

"Details," the girl demanded.

"I would rid the world of criminals, the scum of society. I would kill all murderers, rapists, thieves, crooks, everyone that causes potentially lethal suffering. Anyone who murders, tortures, or pushes others towards insanity or suicide."

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _So, because **TheDoctorsTrueCompanion** asked, I will try to post longer chapters. For that though, I will be sewing up together two or three already written chapters, which means my beta will be working longer at each long chapter. If you do not get an update immediately after you post your review, it means the chapter is being proof-read by my beta. As I've said before, a lot more of the story is already written. _

_Because I'm having a little fun with original characters and I guess it will become confusing in a few chapters, here is a list of the characters that have appeared so far or will appear in the following ten chapters, along with some details:_

 _The Dragon / Giuliano Amadeo / Padre / daddy (Caterina's father, originally inspired by Light, younger Toguro from Yu Yu Hakusho and Sakyou from the same Yu Yu Hakusho)_

 _Anastasia / A. / Sia (Caterina's mother, former dancer, currently a designer, originally inspired by Misa and the music of Lana Del Rey)_

 _Caterina / Cat / Rosa / Kitten / Rin (my ship for Light, trying to escape the fatality of turning into her mother, inspired by an old friend* and Katherine Pierce from the Vampire Diaries)_

 _Vincent / V. (The butler. Hint: EEEEEEVAL lol; inspired by the thief in Tale of the Body Thief, written by Anne Rice**)_

 _The Snake (owner of Green Snake*** bar, Anastasia's drug dealer, former protege of the Dragon)_

 _Diego / the driver (the servant with a very close relationship to his boss (the Dragon) - yes, he gets a name :D and originally inspired by Watari and the charm of the fandom's interpretation of Matt)_

 _King (former protege of the Dragon, mafia boss in China, will appear later; I'm still trying to figure out how this character came to my mind... I think he's got something from Nigel, from the film The Devil Wears Prada. He's... kind of important? Not sure yet if he will appear more than once)_

 _bodyguards, photographers, waiters, cops, doctors, class mates and colleagues, others (don't worry about these, they will most likely appear once and they are not really important. Most of the time, if they don't have a name or a detailed description, they are unimportant)_

 _Some characters will just be mentioned without ever appearing, like some relatives of Light; no need to worry about them._

 _Speaking of Light, the voice in his head will eventually be explained in the beginning of the third part. They're acting like two characters, but it's really just one. Hint: Light isn't very sane, and there are implied reasons because... let's be honest, there are no perfect families in real life, right? ...Okay, I've said enough. I don't want to spoil anything._

 _Let me know if I forgot someone or if you find any of the characters confusing. I will answer your question in the notes of the next published chapter. Until then, I hope you like it and I'll be waiting for your **reviews** and PMs. _

_* C., if you are still reading this story, I hope you don't mind I went a little Taylor Swift over us. Caterina was designed long before what happened. Though I can't guarantee your character will have a happy ever after, you are one of the few lucky people who got a main character in their image._

 _** Tale of the Body Thief is part of the Vampire Chronicles by Anne Rice. If it wasn't already obvious, I love that series and I recommend it to anyone looking for good vampire literature and who can find her books. From experience, start with the first or the second book, or one of the biographic novels (if you look it up, you will see what I mean) but never the third, since it's pretty confusing if you don't already know most of the characters. Tale of the Body Thief is possibly my favorite and a very easy read._

 _*** I used the symbol of the snake from the Bible as the traitor, the evil. I know the serpent has many meanings as a symbol, so I just wanted to clear up the confusion about this. As for the color green, I just thought usually, brightly-colored snakes are venomous and a green snake would camouflage better. It's just a metaphor for the character's role. His real name doesn't really matter since he's not an enemy of Kira._


	19. XVIII - Missed call

_XVIII – Missed call_

* * *

After continuous begging and whining, the Dragon had eventually agreed on taking a few days off and took her on a cruise. Of course, Giuliano wouldn't hear of leaving his precious Caterina behind, just like Anastasia insisted their butler came along.

 _'How is everything?'_ Caterina read on the screen of her phone first thing in the morning. Truth be told, it was a late morning of staying in bed until eleven and listening to the waves washing against the walls of the yacht. They were somewhere in the Yellow Sea, and the girl was ready to enjoy every second of her one week vacation. Sometimes, enjoying a vacation meant lazing around.

 _'Could've been better.'_

 _'A. or V.?'_

 _'Both. It's disgusting how much A. trusts him. Makes me sick.'_ the girl replied.

 _'I can imagine that.'_

 _'How are things with your S.?'_ Caterina asked about his father, Soichiro.

 _'Wonderful, really. Some crime scenes make my stomach turn. I wish the death penalty would be seen as a necessity already, it would save many innocent lives.'_

Light sighed, as the voice inside his head was tempted to start rambling on the matter yet again. It happened several times a day – whenever he thought of crimes and the pain and suffering of the victims, and the grieving of the families… He just couldn't stop that voice from exposing more and more arguments. Sometimes he wanted to throw something at it, make it shut up, yell out loud 'I've got it! I agree with you, just stop trying to convince me already!', only he couldn't do any of these. The one who argued with him was another side of himself, a darker, stronger, more radical side of him.

 _'I don't know. People kill because they want to. Then, they brow their own brains. It's like that law in England that had people hanged for attempting suicide.'_

The boy smiled when reading her text. He knew about it too, read it somewhere without giving it much importance.

 _'I suppose that's true. Can I call?'_ he sent in return.

 _'Nah. A. is fighting with him again, so I'll go swim for a bit. I'll call you in maybe an hour.'_

Caterina could hear them clearly on the small ship. The woman was starting to cry again.

"Caterina, Caterina, _always_ Caterina! What about my needs?!"

"How dare you be so ungrateful?! Caterina is my only child, of course I will put her first! You agreed long ago to all of this. ALL of it."

"I did not!"

"She is the reason you are breathing right now, woman! Do I have to remind you that every five seconds?!"

Caterina had her bathing suit on as she walked up the stairs and on the deck. Sick and tired of arguments like that, she jumped into the crystal clear water and began swimming, allowing her ears to fill with water and the soothing sounds of the sea.

In his cabin, Vincent was listening closely to the fight going on between his official masters. Because unofficially, he had a different master – one who paid him in green American dollars, opening doors wherever he went. Ah, that was the scent of wealth! He loved his old, wrinkled hands smelling like those green banknotes so much!

The butler was free for a few hours. He had convinced the woman he was sea sick, so he could rest in his cabin for hours at a time. But just then, he heard Caterina jumping into the water. The girl could swim well, even if her mother could not… How convenient. Almost too easy. But before that, he wanted to fish for some spicy details about the girl. Opening the door quietly, the old man sneaked into Caterina's room, looking for the most vital device in any teenager's life – her phone.

In the mean time, Light had been called to yet another crime scene. This time, it was a car accident with a child involved and a driver pulling out his hair and crying his eyes out.

"I-I-I didn't even see him! I s-swear! I…! He… He appeared, out of nowhere he just… ran! Oh, God! I didn't mean it! I-I didn't! It was an accident! Oh, Lord!"

As the driver of the car was taken away in handcuffs and desperate tears, the child's blood was slowly drying on the asphalt. Light looked at all the details, his two personalities conflicted to the worst degree. His old self was moved by the poor man's feelings – accidents happened all the time, right? But his dark side would have liked the driver in the death row. He had wounded that five-years-old. The kid wasn't dead yet, but the dark version of Light thought he will die soon enough judging by how much blood there was on the ground.

"Light?" someone called his name as the teenager jumped.

"Yes?"

"Are you alright? You can go, if you want."

Light shook his head. "I'm staying," he declared in front of the officer. "How is the boy?" he asked just as the policeman was about to leave.

"I honestly don't know… I hope he makes it, but…" the officer shrugged. "I think he hit his head pretty bad."

Under the guidance of others and having already learned the procedures, Light began working alongside with the policemen in looking for clues. The car had been going too fast, but according to witnesses and the marks on the asphalt, the driver had tried to slow down and avoid the child a moment before the impact. A little too late, the dark side of Light thought as his other side was content that the driver had tried to avoid the accident.

 _'He is still a criminal if that child dies. Why was he to blame of anything? So young and innocent…'_ the voice argued as Light thought about it. Eventually, he found himself avoiding the discussion and hoping that the little boy survived, even if his chances were scarce.

In a few hours, it was lunch time. After that, Light returned home. His mother and his sister were both gone, probably out shopping, so he took the freedom of calling Caterina. He picked up his phone and went through the contacts, finding her name and pressing the green button. It rang… and rang… and rang, until the voicemail robot answered with the all too familiar _"The person you try to call is not available. Please check the number, or try-"_ He hung up. How strange…

Vincent watched the phone as its screen lit up and it kept vibrating again and again. That boy Caterina had been involving in some family business was calling again. What should he do about it? The fighting was over, he had to prepare something for lunch, but he was too busy hiding the phone he stole from the girl's room.

Suddenly, he heard the door to her room slamming shut.

"Padre?" her unmistakable voice called loud enough for half of the sea to hear her. "Padre. I can't find my phone."

The man's hands began to tremble. He had to get rid of it fast, without destroying the data… Looking around, he came up with the solution. Vincent took out the memory card and the SIM from Caterina's phone, then let it drop as close to the sea level as possible. Lucky for him, the windows were close enough so that nobody would hear the splash. Who would think of looking for it in the middle of the Yellow Sea? And it wasn't like she didn't afford a new one anytime. That spoiled brat had to simply ask for anything she wanted in order to get it.

"If you are so certain, go and look through his cabin." The old man heard his master saying just outside the door. He closed the window as fast as his joints allowed him and laid in bed, pretending to be sick and slumbering.

"Very well." Caterina agreed with confidence as the door opened.

"Vincent, leave the room for a few minutes," the man demanded in a calm voice. He despised the servant, but didn't let it show in front of his family.

"But signore, may I ask what is the cause of this?" Vincent sat up, pretending to be dizzy and holding his temple.

"Yes. My phone, you thief!" Caterina accused him.

"Caterina, remember what I told you…" her father reminded her in a calm and almost warm voice, not for a second taking his eyes off Vincent. The way he glared ice daggers at the old man and addressed his daughter so lovingly were so opposite, it made the Dragon look almost frightening to the butler.

"Young mistress, I apologize, but I am deeply disappointed by this accusation. I had been in my cabin this whole day, and besides, what use would I have of your cell phone?"

Caterina rolled her eyes. Knowing himself clean of evidences, Vincent left the cabin and went into the kitchen. He was pleased with himself – the act was right, the time was perfect, and he had the two most important pieces of the girl's phone – the contacts, messages and logs on one, and the pictures, notes and video recordings on the other. Just a little bit more and he could make sure to spend his retirement in luxury, probably in Amalfi. Or should he choose something more exotic, like the Maldives? He had time to think about it once he received the money.

However, the man began growing anxious. What took them so long? He had lunch ready, but it was almost time for dinner. The sun was starting to set and he couldn't think of anything but the worst. He had the SIM and the memory card in an inner pocket of his vest, he had checked them at least five times. Still, only Anastasia showed up at the table.

The woman had been crying, but she trusted Vincent so much she relaxed completely around him and smiled weakly. She looked defeated from all points of view.

"Would you like anything to drink, signora?"

"Yes… A lemonade would do, thank you."

The butler returned to the kitchen. He took a lemon out of the fridge and began rolling it on the table in an attempt of making it juicier. Just then, he received another message from his unofficial master.

 _'Tonight.'_

When they finally returned, Caterina was still biting the inside of her lips, walking slowly and absent-mindedly. Her father sat at the table, while she leaned with her elbows over the railway.

"Well? Have you found anything, my dear?" Anastasia asked her husband, who sighed and shook his head.

"Nothing. But if you say you did not take it and I know I did not, then it must be somewhere on this yacht."

"I left it there, on the bed." Caterina repeated what she said earlier. "Right in the middle. I looked everywhere for it. It's no longer on this ship, that's the only logical explanation."

"Well, it couldn't have simply disappeared into thin air." Anastasia pointed out the obvious as the girl rolled her eyes and eventually joined them at the table.

"I suppose, no. I'll dive tomorrow, but I think I'll be taking the key with me. I'd rather lose it in the sea than have anything else 'disappearing' from my cabin." Caterina picked up her fork and began playing with it.

"I'm sure you'll find it, sweetheart. And even if you don't, we'll buy you another once we reach the shore." Anastasia tried to make things better, only to be stung by another of the girl's glares.

"It's not that. I had messages, recordings, notes, important stuff saved…" she mumbled.

"Why were these so important?" her father asked.

"…They were, okay?" Caterina mumbled after a moment of silence. "Some of it, anyway."

The old man listened closely, but didn't intervene. He just did his job and served them, without any other unnecessary exchange of words.

After barely having touched her food, Caterina stood up and threw her top and shorts on the deck, jumping in for another swim.

"I will join her." The Dragon stood up as well and went into his cabin to change. He was an experienced swimmer. In fact, it was a hobby of his – learning anything he thought useful, including hand-to-hand combat, martial arts, swimming, mountain climbing, and a few other sports. It was the reason his body had remained strong through the years.

Anastasia on the other hand was terribly afraid of the water. She knew the yacht was safe and she loved being near the sea, but panicked if she ever was to find herself in deep water. She remained at the table, playing with her almost empty glass of lemonade and glancing over the dark waters. Her mind began playing tricks on her as she remembered the shame and loneliness she felt every time she was alone.

Vincent took out his second phone and sent the signal he was ready to do what they told him to do. He sent the number _'3'_ in response to the previous _'Tonight'_ , which meant the countdown had began.

Taking a kitchen knife, he approached the blonde in silence. The woman sighed, trying not to give in to tears again.

"Vincent…" she whined, "Sometimes I feel like they would be much better without me. Perhaps I shouldn't have come…"

Anastasia looked over the dark surface of the water, trusting her butler completely. 'Poor little lamb,' he thought.

"Perhaps… Signora, why don't you go look at the stars? It's such a beautiful night! Let me clean the table."

With a faint nod, she stood up and dragged her feet on the deck where Caterina had been standing less than half an hour ago. She watched the stars and the calm waves until the sea and the sky met in complete darkness. Somewhere, far to her right, she could see water splatters as her husband and their daughter swam together. It wouldn't be the first time they went far from the yacht. When she asked her husband a few years ago, back when he seemed to still have a little bit of sympathy left for her, he said it helped him calm down. _'There's only me, the waves and the stars… The only sounds are the wind and my limbs through the water. You should learn how to swim, it's very relaxing.'_ Anastasia didn't. She was afraid of the water if she couldn't reach the bottom and keep her head at the surface at once.

Rosa was fearless. Unlike her mother, the girl loved the sea and often went to swim far from the shore or the yacht. Giuliano had taught her how to swim since she was two years old. Eventually, the man stopped offering to help his wife overcome her fear of deep waters. Why would he…? He could always take Rosa with him for company.

"They get along so well…" she mumbled when she heard her butler coming out from the kitchen.

Vincent walked behind her. "Can you see them, signora?" he asked in a low, calm voice. The woman nodded, watching the rhythmical movements above the water. "Perhaps they really are better without you, my lady…"

Confused, the blonde turned her head and threw Vincent a look over her shoulder. "…Do you really think, Vincent? Oh, how my heart aches to see them like that…" But in a flash, she saw light reflected into something long and shiny. "Vincent…?" she asked with the fear of a deer finding herself in the lion's den.

"Yes, signora?" he asked in the same calm voice, though a smirk was spreading across his old, wrinkled face. "Do not worry, baby doll. I promise it will be quick." He slapped his gloved hand over the woman's mouth, muffling her desperate cries and feeling her tears through the fabric. She realized what was going to happen, but it was much too late.

The cold blade of his knife sliced through her thin skin, as the blood began to pour from her throat and cascade over her silicone-filled chest, running down the front of her shirt. Anastasia was wasting her last seconds crying hot, bitter tears of betrayal, struggling to gasp for air through the pain. At the last moment, he threw the blonde overboard, watching her as she kept trying to gasp for air and swallowing her own blood mixed with salty water and tears. He watched her kicking in all directions, unable of controlling her actions. What was going on in her head, he wondered… Was she aware of her own death? Was she denying the truth? Or was she simply going insane with all kind of mixed feelings, her mind incoherent and dizzy?

Going to the fridge, the butler took out all of the fresh meat he could find and threw it overboard as well, with as much blood as possible. It would only be a matter of time before the place became a buffet for sharks and that was exactly what he hoped would happen. Vincent then went to clean the blood from the deck and the railway, changing his gloves, vest and shirt and hiding those in a bag in one of the kitchen cupboards, along with the rags he used to soak up the blood. He looked at it as the blood began to dry on the fabric. A dark, sticky liquid with the scent of raw pork meat. Disgusting.

Turning on the water, he washed his hands until no reddish brown could be seen. He checked in between his fingers and under his nails as well. Still, something about it made him feel his hands were still filthy. When he held his hands close to his nose, he could feel the scent of blood along with Anastasia's sweet perfume still on his skin. The man turned on the water again, this time so hot he could barely stand it. He used a brush to scrub everything on his hands, quite possibly one or two superficial layers of the skin.

Eventually, the butler picked up the phone he used to keep in touch with the Dragon's enemies and sent the text _'2'_. Right after the device announced him the message had been sent and received, he turned on the engine of the yacht and began driving it South. With no intention of setting foot on Japanese land again, the man was now rushing towards the life he always wanted.

Clueless of what happened back on the yacht, Caterina was swimming with her father. Having some much more frail arms and legs, she decided to lay on her back and float, watching the stars and relaxing completely. The girl knew her father must have been somewhere underwater – she heard him coming to the surface to breathe every now and then, never too far from her. It gave her a feeling of security. That, and how calm the sea was under a sky clear of clouds and covered in stars.

From time to time, Caterina glanced back towards the yacht. Its lights were easy to spot in the darkness, she only had to turn her head. However… At some point, she began to think that the ship was moving. She couldn't have floated that far away from it, but the lights were growing smaller and weaker by the second.

"Padre?" she called in the dark, standing in the water so she could turn and look around easier. Her father returned to the surface soon enough.

"Is there something wrong?" he asked, reading the worry on his daughter's face.

"I think it's moving, and fast." Caterina nodded towards the yacht and the Dragon followed her movement.

"It is…" he said, chewing a curse he didn't want his dear Caterina to hear. "It must be that traitor, that incompetent cockroach!" he growled as he watched the light lot disappearing. The man looked at the stars next. "He's going South. Come on, let's swim towards the North-West. We must be close to the Chinese shore."

"Padre? What are we going to do next?" the girl asked, well aware she didn't have to list everything they lacked. Her father was enraged and that was never a good sign.

"Act. We will make him think he has an advantage."

Although tired, Caterina began swimming in line with her father. Somewhere behind them, the sea was becoming agitated.

"Don't look back and swim faster," the Dragon instructed. Caterina didn't need anything more. Trying to keep the thought of sharks out of her mind, she continued to swim as fast as her body allowed her.

Back on the yacht, Vincent was pouring himself a glass of champagne and trying on one of the Dragon's suits. It was at least two sizes too large for a frail little old man like him, but he found other precious things. Buttons, watches, and enough cash to last him for a month. Since his employer said nothing about such things, Vincent thought he was free to keep and use them as he wished.

As soon as he reached Taiwan, the butler sent another text – _'1'_. The job was done. Though there were things he had not considered…

A little more to the West, the Dragon was using his influence to gradually take back his power. He knew many people and he had helped many children climb their way from the street to the wealthy class of society. Bank directors, hotel chain owners, managers, administrators, politicians – there was nowhere in the world he had absolutely no one.

With a little effort, the Dragon managed to find a cab. He sat in the back with Caterina, both of them soaked in salty water. The girl was so tired, she could barely keep her eyes open. It was dawn by the time they reached shore and her limbs ached horribly. Still, she said nothing – she was too afraid of appearing weak and frail, a crybaby.

The Dragon told the cab driver an address and the other man turned to look at them strangely. "That's not a safe area, mister. I'll leave you at the railway."

"That's fine."

"It should be about a ten minute walk to that address. No cab will take you there, that quarter is infamous."

"Start the engine," the father demanded and the driver nodded, obeying the order immediately.

Caterina leaned on the window, feeling the glass vibrating under her temple and shaking her brain. She looked straight ahead, past the driver's left shoulder. The streets were getting darker, with less and less people or street lights. Still, she kept telling herself she had no reason to fear anything. Her father was with her after all, right? It was all that mattered.

The cab driver had noticed the scars on his client's body and knew this one was probably of those who had stared death in the eye more than a couple of times. Even so, a few minutes later, he decided it wouldn't do any harm to ask.

"Do you mind?" He had a cigarette in his hand. They were waiting at a traffic light.

"Do you?" the father repeated the question for Caterina, avoiding her name.

"…Yes. I hate the scent."

The driver put the cigarette back in its package and held back a sigh. Once the traffic light turned green, he drove on. It would be another half an hour before he spoke again.

"I'll leave you just around the corner. Do you have the money, or is somebody expecting you?"

"None. You will trust me to bring you the money later. Either you wait around here for about an hour, or I will contact you tomorrow."

The driver began to grow irritated, but the man with the scars was also intimidating.

"How do you plan on contacting me?"

"I will remember the plate number. It is going to be a matter of time before I find you and pay."

"…Very well. Be quick when you take off."

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun** , a little late because of schoolwork, stress, and life. This time it was my fault for not sending this chapter to my beta earlier, but hopefully it will be good enough to be worth the waiting. _

_Well... now you know. Vincent is evil, Anastasia's name was on the Grim Reaper's list, and we're heading towards a crazy, global event towards the end of this part._

 _Also, please take the time to **review,** and if you're not too busy becoming the next L or not too crazed turning into the next Kira, check out my other stories. Different fandom and nowhere near as insane as this one, but still. It won't hurt to take a look, right? Also, keep an eye on my profile for updates about my schedule or announcements. _

_Also, here's a spoiler - another one of the characters you've been seeing around a lot will soon enough be dead. Guess who? You can still save this character, if you want._


	20. XIX - Dust

_XIX - Dust_

* * *

The cab stopped at the corner of a street and told them they would have to walk from there. He didn't dare go into the ghost quarter of the city, nobody did – not even the police. As he warned them before, he didn't stop the engine and was already in a rush towards the center of the city the moment the two were out of the car. The Dragon repeated the plate number several times in his mind.

The two began walking, the Dragon holding his daughter close. He had an arm around her shoulders and his eyes at every shadow that might have moved or watched them from a distance. It was quiet, no sign of a running engine, so they walked on the middle of the street. There was shattered glass, needles, and all kind of garbage on the sidewalks, so it was safer that way. They were both barefoot, Caterina obviously more tired than her father and shivering at the slightest breeze.

"Well, well. Who do we have here?" a raspy voice called from the shadows as he flipped a gun in one hand and hid the other. "Lookin' for somethin'?"

"Someone," the Dragon corrected him, "And you will take us there."

"My, my! Confident, aren't we? What's in it for me, Scar?" the unnamed man asked on a mocking tone, using the nickname to further humiliate the Dragon.

"Years to your miserable life," was his only reply. Leaving Caterina on her own in a rather large open space, the father approached the raspy-voiced man, ready to take out his anger on him.

"Hey, wait a sec… Who are ya?" he asked once he could see just how many scars the Asian-looking man had.

"I have business with your boss, prick. Take me there, now."

"My boss happens to be out of town."

"Pathetic. The next one in line then, his right hand," the Dragon demanded.

"Che. Who the hell are you, man?"

"Someone who has business to discuss with King."

"You got anythin' to sell, or wha'?" the skinny man continued, slowly leaning back on his left foot as the Dragon continued to approach him. Caterina had her arms wrapped around herself, kept awake by a chilly draft. She followed her father, keeping a safe distance from him as well.

"I will be offering him something, that you've guessed correctly. The details, however…" the man looked on both sides, spotting more dark figures hiding in the shadows, "…are confidential."

"Woah, man! Do I get bonus points, or what?" the skinny one began grinning uncomfortably.

"I am tired of repeating myself."

Just then, another stepped out of the shadows and neared them. "Follow me," he said in a plain and unemotional voice, sounding more like a robot than a living being. Tall and bald, Caterina couldn't help but stare in disgust at his disproportioned body. His muscles were unnatural, and from behind it was difficult to tell where his shoulders and neck were. He looked like a mountain of tattooed flesh.

The skinny man walked behind them, so the father found himself obligated to pull his daughter closer. He hated that he had to drag her through the messy side of his life, but was determined not to let it affect her in any serious way.

A few streets away, the tall man gestured for the Dragon and the girl to walk down a flight of stairs in the basement of an apparently abandoned building. They passed some bodyguards, some prostitutes, and a few dogs. None looked like they were going to survive for much longer. Yet, Caterina found it surprisingly easy to ignore their suffering. She was more disturbed by the thick air and the repulsing scents of cheap perfume, sweat, smoke, alcohol and possibly something else. Her father noticed, relieved that she showed no sign of an upcoming revolt.

As they eventually reached the room of the King, they found a man about half the age of the Dragon, surrounded by tired and overused prostitutes, with a few bottles around him and a dog at his feet. He stood up with a smirk when he saw his guests.

"Big brother! I wasn't expecting you anytime soon!" he laughed in fluent Italian. "And so salted."

The joke passed as the Dragon threw him a weak and tired smirk in return. "Neither was I."

"What happened, my man? How are you like this? And who is this?" the King asked, nodding his head towards Caterina.

"That is a story for another time." Suddenly, the Dragon became serious and the King gestured that they'd be left alone. "I have come to gather your gratitude."

"What can I do for you?"

The man in a red suit gestured towards a bar across the room, but the Dragon shook his head. In the mean time, the dog had circled both of the intruders, taking in their scent and features. Caterina lowered her hand and let the animal sniff it, then bent down to pet it once she felt its tongue over her knuckles.

"First, my girl and I will need the basics. Clothes, some money, and guns. Protection for a few days will be very appreciated, but that depends on your situation."

"Count on me, my friend. Everything I have, you have." The man looked left, then right. "I'd still be pocketing tourists without you, I owe you my life!"

"I'm tired." Caterina stood and looked at both of the two men, demanding their attention.

"Is she your…?" the King asked his well-doer and wiggled his thin brows.

"No. But we will share the same room."

"Want anything to eat, then?" the man offered.

"No, thank you." Caterina answered instead, but the Dragon didn't seem concerned. "I want to see our room."

The King began laughing. "I like her," he said as he began walking through another door and down a corridor with many closed doors on each side. "Reminds me of Sia. Ah, such times! Have you heard anything of her?"

"Who is Sia?" Caterina asked, unaware of her mother's nickname.

"Someone unimportant. We didn't keep in touch," the Dragon answered them both just as the King opened the door to a rather large room with the ceiling low. It was rather clean, except for some mold in the corners and the dust in the air. Dust was everywhere in the underground. It seemed to be breathed out by the old walls of the structure.

"I wonder if she's alive. I really liked her. Charismatic, lively, daring – always bubbling, like a can of soda. Girls 'round here are so lifeless…" The King sighed. "Is this alright?" he asked, stepping aside and letting Caterina enter the room first.

A king-sized bed was placed in the middle. There were an old closet and a low table in a corner, and a door to the bathroom. The wallpaper was old and out of fashion, in gold and pink stripes of flowers. The dark wooden floor was scratched and ugly. The green covers of the bed looked washed-out and overly used. Yet, all in all, the room looked comfortable. There was a small cactus in a pot on the table, near the heater – round and spiky, it almost looked fat. It was thriving in the warm and still air of the room. Up, near the ceiling, there were two small windows obscured by dust.

"It will be fine." Caterina knew it was neither the time or place for being picky or demanding. It was a room, large enough for two people, warm, and with its own bathroom. She went and sat on the bed. It was surprisingly comfortable – much like a square pillow, really. It may give her some bad posture pains, but she could always tell herself it was a side-effect from the swimming marathon. And who wouldn't believe her? Only a miracle would make her move normally tomorrow morning. But at the moment, none of it mattered.

In the mean time, obeying the orders he received through the phone, Vincent had mailed the memory card and SIM to an address across the Pacific Ocean, all the way to the infamous LA. In fact, that would be his destination as well – only the information was requested earlier. His flight was in another hour.

Because he wasn't yet suspected of anything, Vincent dared to use his real ID and passport. Before stepping into the airport though, he made sure to check the local and national news sites, the Japanese ones and a few printed papers. No word was written about him. The most he found was that the media was starting to notice Anastasia's absence. Well, they just had to get used to it. The WiFi was probably terribly weak at the bottom of the sea!

The old man had to control himself hard in order to avoid laughing out loud at his own jokes. Why would the blonde be special in the first place? She was just another prostitute who happened to become a mother and had the fortune – or misfortune? – to marry a wealthy man.

His skin began to crawl from simply thinking of the Dragon's fortune. If he could get as much as a quarter of it, he could live anywhere in the world for another century! But for now, he had to buy himself a coffee because the lack of sleep was starting to catch up with him.

In China, the Dragon began gathering information with the help of his former protégé, the King. He knew there would be few those to refuse him after he had helped them raise in the world of business and death. Because, in truth, these were the only two certainties for him – money and death.

"But what exactly did he do, mm? I don't remember seeing you this determined in a looong, long time, big brother."

The Dragon sighed, leaning against the back of the couch. "For someone who calls himself a 'king', you still have enough to learn… Your information web is not good enough. Which is also reassuring, but not from your perspective."

Sitting across from him on a different couch, the King smirked and shook his head. "I can't argue with that. Let's play a game, then. What do you say? I bet one thousand on every answer. I'm right? You pay. I'm wrong? I pay."

After a moment of thought, the Dragon raised the corner of his mouth in agreement. It was neither a smirk or a smile, but something in between… less threatening than usual. He called one of the guards with a gesture of his hand and asked him to find the driver of a certain taxi and pay him. After that, he turned his eyes on the King.

"Always keeping your word…" the King noticed, "I wouldn't have. He's just a cab driver, what could he do to ask for the money? What he did was illegal in the first place. He had no Ace up his sleeve."

"Perhaps. But a woman will spend more on her underwear. It's a small sum, unimportant."

The other shook his head, laughing silently. In a move, he threw ten marbles on the table in between them and sent five towards the Dragon, keeping the other five on his edge.

"First, I think it's something personal, am I right?" the King asked. After a moment, the Dragon sent one marble to the other side. "Is this man an associate of yours?"

After a good start, the younger man's confidence began to crack. "No," the Dragon answered shortly and the other had to send his sixth marble back to the Dragon.

"Think carefully. Remember what I taught you."

This time, the King waited for another minute before asking his question. "Does he owe you anything?" Once the Dragon shook his head, the King had to send another marble over.

"I don't get it… If it's not money, but it's personal… No, you said you didn't do business… Did he serve you in any way?"

"What do you think?" the Dragon asked in all seriousness.

Frowning, the King leaned forward and set his finger over another one of his marbles. The Dragon looked relaxed, amused – in control of the game. Yet, he sent another marble over to his former protégé.

"A servant?!" the younger man exclaimed. "Anyone new, then?"

"Send it over," the Dragon answered. "You don't focus, I don't like that."

"An old servant, someone trusted, right?" the King corrected himself, earning the right to keep all of his marbles. "Has he betrayed you in some way?"

The Dragon sent another marble over. The King watched it rolling, looking at the little irregular vines of color, reminding him of colored smoke in a ball. Just then, Caterina walked in wearing a pair of black jeans and a white tank top. She sat beside her father and curled her legs on the couch, beside her.

"What's this?" she asked.

"A game our host has proposed," the Dragon answered her.

"I am curious of his motives. Do you know?" the King asked Caterina as a joke.

"Well, I have my… theory about it, but no, I don't know anything for certain," the girl answered.

"You heard her." The Dragon began to smirk as he received another marble.

"Does this count as well?!" the younger man asked, frowning in disbelief. Yet, the Dragon's silence made him roll yet another marble on the other side. Now he had six to win over in order to win.

"Ah, I see now. I think I'll watch." Caterina chuckled. "But I'm hungry. Is there any food around here?"

"My fried brain, in a couple of minutes…" the King joked.

"I'm afraid even I need more than smoke to live," Caterina said in an innocent voice sounding more her age for a moment, yet insulting the other at the same time.

"What do you want, Kitten?" the King asked, sounding both annoyed and ignorant towards her.

"Some fried eggs would do. A phone, too."

"Let's not abuse our host's generosity," her father warned her just as the King began glaring. There was a very fine line between humor and insults, which Caterina was nowhere close to being allowed to ignore.

"Fine." With a sigh, she leaned back in her seat beside her father and let her hands slip between her thighs. Light's answers would have been so annoying, but so very welcomed at such a time… She hated the tense atmosphere and how she had to shut up in front of others. Although she understood the danger of a loose tongue and a sharp mind of a young woman in her situation, she still hated it from her very core.

"She resembles Sia more than I would've liked…" the King began, addressing his well-doer, "Were you lying when you said these two don't know each other? Kitten and Sia…"

Caterina would have expected her father to gain another marble, but instead, he leaned forward and sent it rolling fast to the other side. The girl's eyes widen in surprise.

"Are they related?" was the next question; that made the auburn-haired girl turn towards her father and stare at him in shock. Another affirmative answer rolled to the other side.

Taking a moment to think, the King leaned back and held his chin. He was glaring at Caterina intently.

"Did Sia have a kid when she disappeared from the bar?"

That moment, Caterina began to understand. The pieces of the puzzle were falling into place and she glared at the King equally cold. At the same time, another marble crossed the table, leaving the Dragon with the equivalent of three thousand dollars.

At the same time, in Taiwan, Vincent was just finding his seat in the plane. Because of his age, he was allowed among the first, spared of the madness of tens and tens of people trying to find their seats, figure out how the belt worked, families arguing about which child should sit by the window and possibly some toe-stepping and rib-elbowing.

In another few minutes, he would be sipping his tea among the clouds, crossing the ocean on his way to a life of luxury and relaxation. The old man turned off his cell phones and leaned back in his seat. As soon as everyone had occupied their seats, one of the air hostesses approached him and made sure he was alright. He asked for a pill, something for the heart and blood pressure – just in case the excitement of his wildest dreams happened to get the best of him. He also asked for assistance during the entire flight. Not that he needed anything in particular, but young, smiling women flocking around could make him feel a little younger.

The plane moved around for a few long and boring minutes. Beside him, there were a teenage girl sitting by the window and a middle-aged man. The girl was reading a paperback book as thick as her small palms, holding it with care as if it was a treasure. A rare sight, indeed. She had earphones shoved in her ears, but Vincent couldn't hear the buzzing of her music. Either these were high quality earphones, or she didn't abuse the volume like most youngsters did.

Beside him, the man had just ended a phone call and leaned back with a sigh, holding the red button on his phone. The device sang a short melody, displayed the animation of its creator, then its screen went completely black and the light of the keys went out. The man was obviously agitated, mindlessly playing with his fingers and rubbing his hands together, much like a child about to be scolded by the school principle.

"Excuse me…" the man began. Out of curiosity and slightly annoyed, Vincent turned his head towards him and raised his eyebrows.

"Yes…?"

"Have you… done this before? Flying, I mean… How is it when… you know, it… takes off?"

With a sigh, Vincent closed his eyes for a little bit. "It's nothing to worry about. Loud, but perfectly safe. I've researched this company before, actually, and I can guarantee they are the safest in this side of the world."

"Really?" Although Vincent thought these to be mere facts, the other seemed impressed. "I hope it will be alright… You know, this is my first time flying. I've always preferred going by train, or bus, or even walking. I've walked almost all of Asia in the past twenty years."

Just as Vincent was getting tired of his companion's chit-chat, the engines were turned on. The girl beside him closed the book without using any bookmark and looked outside, while the man to his right closed his eyes and began mumbling prayers. Vincent just sighed, leaning in his chair and making sure he had his seat belt tight enough around his waist. When the girl put the book on her lap, the old man glanced over to look at the title. The Mummy, by Anne Rice. He had heard of that American writer before, but preferred a different kind of literature, and a different kind of story-telling. Yet, he could tell that Anne Rice knew how to make a young mind flexible and curious, two very important traits that few teenagers possessed.

In another few seconds, they could all feel the plane taking off. Vincent couldn't hide a smile… It was a wonderful feeling, to know you were supported only by air, that you owed this privilege to centuries of dreams and ambitions, as well as centuries of funding and savings. Because, isn't it? It's always the rich that make things happen. Without their money, no artist or scientist or researcher or explorer could have ever put any of their ideas into practice.

Vincent closed his eyes and tried to pretend he was asleep. Perhaps that way, the one next to him would leave him alone with the story of his useless life. And surprisingly, the old man did seem to be dozing off for a little bit. He woke when his tea was being served, along with the apple juice the girl at his left ordered. The other man was off, probably using the restroom. Vincent took the apple juice cup from the air hostess and gave the girl a weak smile.

Taking off her earphones and closing the book again, she accepted the drink and returned his smile.

"Thank you. I'm sorry, I didn't hear you if you've said anything, sir."

Vincent felt his smile growing. She addressed him by 'sir'? Was this still possible from someone in her generation? The girl had to be roughly the same age as Caterina, perhaps a few years younger. "I did not."

Sipping her juice, the teenager nodded. Soon, they were both back at what they were doing before. The girl began reading and Vincent was looking at the ass of the air hostess bending over someone to help them with something… He couldn't see what was going on, but he couldn't care less. The only thing that interested him was that young ass so well shaped in that tight blue skirt.

But all of a sudden, people began to freak out and panic. It seemed from one of the engines there could be seen dark smoke coming out. Vincent turned towards the other row of small windows and saw the dark cape of death surrounding the plane.

In the mean time, the Dragon was just winning the game against his former protégé. Caterina was right by his side, watching the marbles crossing from one side of the table to the other. Each little marble was symbolic for a thousand dollars.

"Last question, perhaps?" the Dragon asked him as a tease.

The King swallowed his saliva and glared at his last marble. His last chance to turn the table… "Your old servant had not only stolen information and money from her," he began, looking towards Caterina, "but from yourself as well, while you allowed him all this… in order to find out who he works for, right?"

The Dragon remained still for a long moment of tension, then set his finger on one of his nine marbles. He rolled it forward, then back again. Forward… Backwards… Forward…

"Am I right?" the King asked again, almost biting the air as he did. His heart was skipping beats with every move of that ninth marble, as he held his last one in his hand like a precious jewel. To him, this one last marble was worth ten thousands.

"You are… not." The Dragon said after another long moment of awkward silence.

The King threw his marble on the table, growled and threw himself back on his couch – so hard he was a few centimeters away from falling over. Caterina smirked in delight, watching the man in all his frustration. She leaned on her father's side.

"But why?! What was the answer?" the man asked when he recovered his self control.

"I let him do all that and more because I do not operate without certainties, or evidences. I know who he works for. I know what he's done and what he is planning to do. I knew for a long time." The Dragon's face showed the sweetness of victory and the calm of a calculated man who had to learn from experience how to deal with both a win and a lost.

"But-! It makes no sense! You knew he stole from you, you knew he spied on you, but you did nothing to stop him!" The King was about to pull out his hair at the absurdity of this. "I lost ten thousand on nonsense!"

"It makes perfect sense when you follow my values. Calm down and think, you idiot," he ordered. "Rumors and suspicions are hypothesis. Until evidences are gathered, hypothesis can be as true as they can be false, at the same time. Logically speaking, there is no way to determine the truth value of a hypothesis without proof."

"…You are insane." The King stared at the Dragon in pure shock. "What are you going to do now?" he asked, barely able to speak. The King had wiped out of existence an entire quarter for much less, but his former well-doer seemed almost foolish in how much he had allowed that one traitor.

In the city of angels, the serial killer admired by the Dragon had left another crime scene puzzle to be solved. A twenty-eight year old bank worker was found mutilated – she was nicknamed Backyard Bottomslash.

Just a few streets away, a dealer was just making his way towards the meeting place. He was expecting someone from Taiwan, who had to take a cab from the airport to the specified address. He should have received it as soon as he turned his cell phone back on – in other words, as soon as the plane had landed.

The man hid his eyes behind a pair of round glasses and shaded his long face with a large hat. He looked at the watch on his wrist – a brilliant fake – and scanned the crossroads for anyone similar to the description he had received. He was waiting for an European man, tall, slender, around seventy, alone and without any luggage, taking off from a cab, wearing a dark suit.

"…the hell is he," he mumbled to himself. The man had others to meet, he didn't have the entire evening to himself. And even if he did! That old man was supposed to be there half an hour ago. It was getting dark and the dealer had to meet someone halfway across LA to deliver some guns. Being late could mean either less money in the happiest case, or less days to live in the worst – or none, to be more precise. Feeling the fear and panic creeping up his spine, the man took out a rolled cigarette and sucked the smoke like his life depended on it. He needed it to feel calm and normal – it was no longer about getting high. No… it was so he could think like a normal person.

What the dealer didn't know was that the old man was not going to show. Not that evening, not any other evening. His boss would be displeased, to say the least. When he realized it, the dealer had already smoked his joint and was on his way to the parking lot where he had to meet with his next client.

Back at the King's base, one of those hired by his guest was returning to report.

"Master, with your permission…" he began, waiting for the Dragon to give him a hint. The man nodded, so the report continued. "The target had been hit at 11:23, as ordered. The plane had been on fire before falling into the Pacific. We have searched the area and we have ten survivors."

The Dragon remained silent for another moment. "Anything else?"

"No, master."

"Good… I want the body or the remains of the target."

With a silent nod, the informant stood and made his way outside. The King looked after him. "Do you trust him?"

"I have more than one means of information. They have no reason or possibility to lie," the Dragon answered with confidence.

"So is V. really…?" Caterina asked her father.

"Hopefully. We shall see. His connections are next. In the mean time, you should think of the new phone you want, my dear." For a moment, he smiled towards her. "You shall receive it in a few days, along with the information the prick had stolen from us. I would advise you not to use the SIM though…"

That moment, Caterina wrapped her thin arms around her father's strong shoulders and pressed her soft lips to his rough cheek. The King noticed… still confused about certain aspects, like what was their relationship or how did they end up together. From what he could recall, Sia had disappeared from everyone's sight a few months before the Dragon decided to move onto more serious business. How did Sia's girl end up with the Dragon?

"Anything else you'd like?" the Dragon asked her.

"I think you know," the auburn-haired girl answered. By that, she meant the life from before – an apartment at the top floor of the tallest hotel in Tokyo, room service, late night talks, organic juice, way more clothes than she could possibly wear, and all the other ways in which he spoilt her ever since she could remember.

Though, to the King, it sounded like her asking for something entirely different.

"And… You know, it's getting rather Dark…" she mumbled. Of course, to anyone else this made no sense, but her father understood.

"That will have to wait until everything returns to how it was before. I think you know that."

"Yes, of course… But you know I hate waiting."

"Right…" the King said, standing up from his seat. He went to take another bottle from the bar and poured himself another glass. "You know, I've been wondering… What is your status exactly, Kitten?"

The Dragon looked at his daughter, who was watching the King intently. It was her turn to accept the challenge and have a change of words with the man. Her father wanted her to win, but at the same time, he wanted to see her winning on her own. What greater satisfaction could he have from his only child than to see her beating one of those he shaped in his own image?

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by my favorite beta, **Eat4Fun.** Also, I'm glad to hear from you, **Jupiter's Bull.**_

 _I was having a difficult time trying to find a good LightxOC story that was believable and kept canon characters accurate, so I decided to write this one. If I do finish it, I may spare one chapter for notes and such, kind of like the "How to Read" volume. This part is almost over, and it will end with a big boom. After that, we'll finally reach the canon story from the anime. Honestly, I can't wait to write for L~ I hope I'm not the only one crazed for both Light and L, without necessarily shipping them._


	21. XX - Pyramid

_XX - Pyramid_

* * *

"You know, I've been wondering…" the King began, while playing with the glass in his hand, "What is your status exactly, Kitten?"

Caterina watched him in apparent superiority, though deep inside, something began to shake. Her father was there, watching… This man before her had been raised by her father, he had been shaped by him into the man he currently is. He represented a threat to the auburn-haired girl, while her father was the judge. In a sense, she thought, _'that's how gladiators must have felt in the arena'_ , just about to be devoured in front of the emperor for his amusement, holding onto the handle of a sword for dear life and unable to move.

"Take your time, baby doll. Or is silence your only answer?" the King asked her in a mocking tone, warning the girl she had been silent for a moment too long.

"Oh, was I supposed to answer that?" she asked just as ironic in return.

"What did you think, mm? That I was asking it for my amusement?"

"Why not?" Caterina returned his question and managed to buy herself some time as the King chuckled.

"Well then, now you know. So?"

"I am mommy's little-me and daddy's little girl." Caterina smiled sweetly, her green eyes glaring at the King but afraid of turning towards her father. "Any other status I may carry does not concern you. Perhaps I am a lost princess of England! Perhaps my daddy is a Cardinal in Rome. Perhaps my mommy was the daughter of Hitler. You can't tell, and I can't either. It's irrelevant, anyway."

It seemed her little attempt of blowing dust in his face had at least managed to amuse him terribly, because the King had to put down his glass. He was laughing so hard, he was about to drop his precious drink.

"Irrelevant, you say?" the man managed to ask between laughs, "Is that what you say? That I can't tell?" After he was done laughing, the man stood and approached her, walking around the table.

At the same time, Caterina forced herself to stand as slowly and elegantly she could. Adrenaline and fear pumped through her veins. The man was at least one head taller than her and getting close enough for her to feel his breath on her forehead and the heat of his body emanating through the clothes.

"Exactly. I will only tell you one thing…" she stated in all seriousness. "One day soon, I will be on top of the world, and when that morning comes, I don't want a too long black list. And you know why?"

The King leaned back enough to see how the girl's expression changed. Although her voice remained calm and sweet, her green eyes began burning with a silent kind of rage.

"Why?" he asked after a few moments.

"Because I will be throwing a party. A big, sumptuous, luxurious party, inviting every cockroach I had come to meet and despise. You know… there was a Romanian ruler in the country of Moldova. Long before the country of Romania appeared as a state on the map, one of those small, unimportant states that few can pin-point on a map. Do you know where that is? In the East of Europe, just South from Ukraine."

The King froze. He was half Ukrainian, although he thought only the Dragon knew that about him. He had murdered anyone else who could have known his past and taken advantage of it. Or so he thought.

"That ruler promised his wife a cure for her fear. He had many enemies, you see…" Caterina went on, approaching the other with a smirk on her face. "Traitors, cockroaches, disgusting two-faced creatures. They insulted him, played him, tried to exile him… Do you know what he did? He threw a banquet. A big, sumptuous, luxurious banquet. At dessert, he ordered their execution. All of them. Beheaded!" Her hand cut through the air, mimicking a blade about to cut the King's throat. "And their heads thrown together into a pyramid of shame. Beheaded, like chicken. Have you ever seen such thing? A chicken running around the family's backyard without a head, blood gushing from its open throat."

As the Dragon was listening quietly, the King's color began to fade. He turned a yellowish tint of pale, like those suffering from liver diseases, wrinkling his nose in disgust.

"When I will wake up on top of the world, I will send the invitations by sunset. And then, I'll throw a party, much like this ruler did. I'm afraid his last name escapes me, but his first was Alexander. Alexander~! What a great name, don't you think? Alexander, Alexander… I love it! I'll name my son Alexander. Of course, his wife was horrified, but I really like this idea. Brilliant, don't you think?"

"You're sick…!" the King eventually hissed, watching the teenager in utter horror.

"I already have a black list, and their heads will roll at the bottom of the pyramid. You see, I really like the Romanian Middle Ages. I think the world needs to remember the violence of those times. People were less shameless and reckless back then, when losing your head could be taken literally!"

"How the hell did you get here?! That angel face of yours is a lie, you're insane!" the man mumbled as he spun his index finger by his temple.

"You invited me, can't you remember?" Caterina asked in an all too innocent voice, her eyebrows rising in apology and surprise.

"Who the hell have you brought into my home!" the King turned towards the Dragon.

"I thought you liked her. She has Sia's angelic face, you said it yourself, but I think she is much more. It's in her blood, in her veins… I've known her before she was born."

The girl's heart trembled with joy as she heard her father speak of her with such pride. It was done – the lion was dead, the gladiator alive, and the emperor entertained. Slowly and quietly, Caterina moved behind the King and trailed her hand on the back of the couch.

"Boo~" she breathed in his ear.

"Once more and I'll blow your fucking brains out!" he growled, hand on the gun he always carried in his coat. Yet, the girl could see the sweat on his neck and forehead, right where his black hair met the skin.

"You wouldn't dare," the girl answered in a low voice, thinking her father hadn't heard. Six other guards were in the room, all ready to shoot the girl – only she had no real weapon but her words.

"Is that a dare, little brat?!"

But that same second, the Dragon sent a knife flying past his former protégé's head. Slowly, the King turned to see one of the dull knives they had used to eat still trembling in the wall behind.

"My, such accurate shot, wasted! But warnings are nice, they can be fun. Sometimes, they can make those fine hairs on your back and arms stand up – thrilling!" the girl chuckled, then slowly walked back to her father, taking a seat to his right.

"I let you enjoy your little game, but I am still not done," the Dragon spoke calmly, "and neither are you."

"Right. The bank accounts. The money should have been transferred by now." This time, the King was the one feeling like a gladiator – defeated, bleeding, begging the mercy of the public and hoping for a thumbs up.

"You know that's not how I work in such situations. Years back, in Italy, when I picked you up and took you under my roof, I explained these details to you."

Caterina sat back beside her father, watching both men talking. She was hunting for details – pieces of theory in their game that she would need when she was to follow on her father's steps.

"Bank accounts nowadays are much safer than they were back then. I don't think it should be a problem-" the King began to speak, but stopped when the Dragon laughed quietly.

"The alcohol must have scattered half of your brain."

Confused, the King watched the Dragon exposing the major flaw in his thinking.

"We are talking about the police, possibly working with the secret services. We know there will be at least two countries with the status of a global and continental power. I am talking about China, respectively Japan. Do you remember Punky?"

The King nodded. "The kid was into technology and hacking. Until…" He leaned his head sideways and shrugged, as if to say _'life happens'_ , or something along that line.

"Until he crossed me. He had been working with the European Information Agency for two years, until I received proof he had been tracking my business associates, closing a circle around me." The man smirked. "This is very common – even more common than prostitution. Such agencies will fake the death of the best hackers in the world, corrupt them with money and numerous advantages and favors, then hire them for their own use. Some are as young as twelve, from my sources, though it wouldn't surprise me to find a few even younger than that."

Caterina was guessing where her father was taking this and decided to take the chance.

"It's such a great probability, it becomes an almost certainty. Bank accounts and cell phones can be tracked, and judging by the King's words from earlier, we had already caught the attention of some investigators – even if there are no clear evidences to support this."

At the same time, across the ocean, a different underground leader was talking with a subordinate – only this one was much more displeased.

"He didn't! I swear! I don't even know what he had to bring you –" the dealer was trying to defend himself. He had his hands up in front of him and his sunglasses were slowly sliding down his nose.

"You incompetent! A fly would be more fucking useful!" the boss yelled. He was tall, bald, and red with rage. Veins were pulsing under his skin, looking like they were about to burst open.

"But boss, it wasn't me! I didn't do anything this time! He just didn't show up. I stood there half an hour, nothing!"

The boss paced the room while the skinny blond man made a few uncertain and very fast steps back and into a corner.

"What about the other thing? Did you deliver what I told you?"

"Yes, Sir!" the blond answered with a wide grin. "All of it – the clients were very pleased!"

"And where the hell is my money?!" the boss yelled again, turning towards the skinny dealer.

"Right there!" Holding his hands back up in defense, he pointed towards a suitcase he had left on a coffee table in the middle of the room. Immediately, his boss went to open it and began counting the stacks of money.

"If I see a single dollar missing-!" he threatened his subordinate through gritted teeth.

"Not a cent, Sir! I didn't touch it!"

But unfortunately for him, the clients had not paid the entire sum. Another misfortune was the dealer's antecedents of taking some of the money for his own use – or rather, for the weed he smoked every day.

When he was done counting, the man stood up just as mad as before, if not more so. Confused, the dealer stood small and frozen in shock. For once, he did everything right – what could there be wrong?

"You dare lie to my face!" the boss growled like a caged animal. Before the other had a chance to dodge, the boss bent him over his fist, hearing a rib or two cracking loudly.

"Jack, you sneaky little flea! You're like a pest! I'll kill you right now if you don't give me my money! All of it!"

Coughing, the blond man going by the name of Jack tried to utter something, but before he could order his thoughts, another hit lent on his side. Soon, his entire body became the punching bag of his boss, until the lights on the walls became blurry and the ceiling and floor spun together a few times. He thought he would faint – he hoped that he'd faint. But another few hits lent on his stomach, until he tasted his own blood. Whatever happened after that, he didn't feel it – finally, it had all faded to black.

Back in Japan, it had been two full days without a reply and Light knew something must have happened. And who else should he share this with, if not his father? He was the Police Chief, after all, as well as the teenager's role model. But gladly, he wasn't the one to bring up this subject. Sayu did it instead.

"Has your girlfriend left you yet?"

"First, she is not my girlfriend. We are not together."

"Right…" the girl rolled her eyes.

"Second…" Light began, only to look towards his father. "I am starting to feel worried. She is on a cruise with her family, but the last time we talked was two days ago. Usually, she never let me wait for an answer anywhere near this long."

"So she did leave you." Sayu concluded.

"I doubt it. Perhaps she ran out of battery, or is in a place without signal."

Light tried to believe what his mother said – it could happen, right? – but the voice refused to even consider it. _'Something must have happened.'_ The boy shook his head. "It was too sudden for that. Besides, she had been suspecting their butler of working for someone else for a few months now."

"We can't open an investigation on the matter until there is anything confirmed. There were no reports of anything grave happening on the Yellow Sea," the father eventually said.

"What if they sunk?" Light asked his father. "Then nobody would survive to report the case."

"There should have been some S.O.S. messages received by the coast police of the nearest country." The Chief shook his head, though he began considering possible scenarios.

"Is there no way we can at least find the position of the yacht?" Light asked after a few moments of silence.

"It would be illegal to track them down like that… Unless you have some evidences to support the possibility that something actually happened. You said the girl suspected their butler."

"Woah! It's like in a movie!" Sayu exclaimed, looking from her father to her brother and back again, as if watching a tennis match.

"I can show you some text messages. A few hours before they left, Caterina sent me this."

Light took out his phone and went through the messages, then showed his father the strange texts.

 _'Got him'_

 _'Got who?'_

 _'V. I got him.'_

 _'How?'_

 _'He lies about the robbery. V. said he was in the hall and 3 men locked him in the bathroom, they 'busted' down the door. The surveillance camera shows the thieves using a key and there's no one in the hall.'_

"What's that? I wanna see!" Sayu stood up from her seat and went to look over her father's shoulder. "Who is V.?"

"That's short for the butler's name, Vincent. It was her idea." Light clarified, while waiting for his phone to be returned.

"These are serious accusations, Light. I hope you realize this."

The teenager looked at his father and read trouble in how serious he had become. "I do, and I understand this may not be much, but I believe Caterina may have been right to suspect the butler of bad intentions."

"You should present this to the police. It may help in the robbery case. As for the cruise… I will try to open an investigation. How long had it been since you last heard from her?"

"Thirty-two hours now."

The man frowned, thinking. "Keep an eye open for any text or phone call you might receive. If your suspicions are true, we will start an investigation on the case."

"But dad, it's always the butler! In every movie, it's the butler who does it. He knows everyone and can enter anywhere he wants, it's perfect." Sayu commented.

The dark voice inside of Light's head began considering what the girl had just said. It was a cliché, overused in way too many films and books, but it may be true… After all, the butler and the maids had power, right? They were allowed in any part of the house, went everywhere with their masters, heard many important discussions not many others knew about… and were often left alone with one of the family members. That was the perfect set of opportunities for a murderer.

Besides, it continued, they were in the middle of nowhere. Who would come to their rescue? Even if a victim yelled, they had nowhere to run and no one to hear them in the middle of the sea. That would explain why nobody sent any S.O.S. messages – the dead can't call for help. _'We have to find the current location of that yacht,'_ the voice concluded, and even if Light didn't want to believe it, he had to admit the hypothesis seemed to be tying most of the loose ends together.

That evening, Light had done nothing but surf the Internet for information, watching the news on TV and checking his phone every half an hour. With every article he opened, he hoped to find something useful. With every news report, he grew more annoyed by the superficiality of it all – he didn't care about celebrities meeting in secret or football match results! Everybody knew there was rarely anything true or real in the world of sports and flashlights.

Eventually, he found a talk show where the aspiring model, Misa Amane, was talking about her last photo shoot with Anastasia. That caught Light's interest.

 _'Yes. Misa was on the beach, and girls began to scream and the photographers said there was a body in between some rocks and bushes.'_

 _'But didn't you feel any repulsing scent, or anything like that?'_

 _'No! It was a nice day, Misa remembers. Nobody thought there would be a body there.'_

 _'What happened next?'_

 _'Well, they called the police and Misa left with Anastasia. Misa was scared to stay there. The bodyguards said it wasn't safe.'_

 _'I can imagine,'_ continued the host, _'It must have been a very frightening experience.'_

Misa nodded. _'It was horrible.'_

 _'Was that the last time you saw the designer? Did you talk afterwards?'_

 _'The driver took Misa home and let Anastasia to meet with her husband. But Misa doesn't know anything else.'_

Light sighed. This wasn't very useful and listening to Misa talking in third person and whining every other word was close to giving him a headache. He changed the channel again, looking for some last moment news about a yacht on the Yellow Sea. All that he found was that the yacht had gone missing from all radars about ten hours after he stopped receiving any reply from Caterina.

This was enough for the media to start questioning, but they had no idea who or what to ask. Definitely talking to Misa wasn't going to give them any real information… He sighed. There had to be something more. There is no perfect crime, absolutely none. They all make some mistakes. It was only a matter of time until he would be able to pinpoint these mistakes and piece this case together.

The next day was August the 13th. An interesting date, some might have said. In the crowded city of Tokyo, the Police Chief was signing the permission needed for a new investigation to begin, while two rooms away, a team was being formed.

"Are you sure this is a good decision, Chief?" possibly the most dedicated subordinate asked.

Soichiro Yagami sat at his desk with his hands holding each other in a contemplative image. "My son can see how a real investigation goes on, from the very beginning. He won't be in any dangerous mission, and I believe he may learn from this experience."

"Excuse me, Chief, but I don't believe this is the best decision. All information on the case is confidential and besides, he is emotionally involved, as far as I have been informed."

"True, but my son claims he is not attached to any of the possible victims," the man stated. "I have made a decision."

"Yes, sir."

Shuichi Aizawa left the room and went where the rest of the team would be meeting every day from then on, until the case would be solved. With a sigh, he looked over the people who he had to coordinate.

"Good morning. I have been charged with leading this investigation. In other words, any findings or theories you may have, you will report to me."

Five others looked at him, a few nodding, and a few just looking at each other.

"Is Yagami here?" Aizawa asked.

From behind him, the student walked in. He was wearing his school uniform and had an almost professional image, tall and well put-together. He was serious and calm, which made many of the policemen think he was a few years older.

"I am," Light said simply and clearly.

"Good." Turning towards the others, Aizawa nodded towards the student. "He will be observing the on-going investigation. He is here only for educational purposes, as the Chief said. This means you will not do anything important but observe and take notes," he addressed Light, "while the rest of us will work on solving this case."

"I won't be in your way, I assure you." Light said in response.

"Now," Aizawa said, approaching one of the two men working on a computer, "What do we know?"

"We have a family of three, plus a butler. They had left the country by sea, on a yacht property of Giuliano Amadeo. The radars show the yacht sailing without any apparent problem for the first day, then stopping right here…" he said, showing the map of the Yellow Sea. "For seventeen hours, the yacht had been relatively still. Then, the signal had been suddenly lost."

Light approached the screen and looked at the timing. "Can you track down the cell phone of one of the family members? I can give you the number."

"It will be more difficult if we can't have a live connection. But I can check to see where a certain call was made," another offered.

The Voice began to grow excited, watching as the hacker began going through evidences and tracking down the signal. All Light had to do was give him the precise time of the call. And it was no surprise to him when they found out it led to the same position of the yacht.

Next, the student tried to call Caterina so that the police could track down the current location of her phone. Unfortunately though, there was no signal to track down, because no device received Light's call.

"It must be either turned off, or destroyed. For how long had it been like this?" one of the investigators asked.

"About an hour and half before the yacht disappeared from the map," Light said, answering any question asked like the good student he was.

"Aizawa, sir! I have found some bank transactions from the last twenty-four hours! The money had been directed towards various banks in China. Giuliano Amadeo's bank accounts had been used thirty times since the incident."

For some reason, Light felt a strong rush of emotion turning his stomach and chilling his bones. That was him, the father, the source of that family's power. He was alive, there was no other explanation his mind would accept – either part of it. It also meant he was preparing for something, his darker side thought. So many transactions in such a short time meant he had a plan and an exact idea of how much it would cost. The Voice was growing anxious to see where the next fire or explosion would be, because it was obvious by then that Caterina's father was the one ordering these fires. It was his signature, after all… And Caterina knew. Perhaps not every detail, but she knew.

 _'Are you mad at me?'_

 _'…If I was, you'd be in hell.'_

Wouldn't he…? Light had to hold back from laughing at his sudden realization, hiding the impulse with a smile that turned out as a smirk.

"What's that?" Aizawa asked, bringing his focus back on the present moment.

"They're alive. They have to be. From how Caterina spoke of her father, he was extremely cautious, so there couldn't be anyone but himself who did these transactions. Secondly, he was very attached to his daughter, so that means she must be with him. That's such a relief for me!" he sighed, a smile never leaving his face. Yes, it was all starting to make sense… But he didn't need to tell the police everything. It would be more interesting to see what happens.

On one hand, the police was already tracking down all of the Dragon's names using the mistake his former protégé had committed – the bank transactions. Someone had sold them a list of many names used by the man to secure his impressive fortune. Light was looking at the list, counting down the names. They were a total of thirteen already verified names, and the number was growing with each hour. The Japanese police was working with states all over the globe, blocking the accounts as fast as possible – yet, the money they found in each were insignificant. So much, Light couldn't help but imagine the Dragon was leading the authorities into a trap.

 _'If that is true,'_ the Voice said in his thoughts, _'we should distance ourselves from the investigation and wait for a sign from Caterina… Because if her daddy is powerful enough to get out of this one, she will be our stepping stone to our goal of implementing the capital punishment all over the world. If we can get our hands on this web of connections, nothing will stop us.'_

"Yet…" Light mumbled on his way home, "if we want to change the world, we will need the police on our side. We should play this card carefully…"

He stopped at a barrier and waited for the train to cross. Just half a meter away, a young man was snapping the purse of a mid-aged woman and speeding over the barrier, crossing the railway only a second before the train did.

"Catch him! A thief! He got my purse! Help!"

But none of that was going to solve the problem. _'The people from the other side may not even hear her screams, and everyone on this side must wait for the train to pass in order to run after him…'_ the Voice analyzed the situation.

"…If only he had been a second too late…" Light mumbled under his breath, well aware the sound of the crossing train covered it, _'Then it would have been justice,'_ both him and the Voice agreed mentally.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _As usual, chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun.** This chapter was also filled with references. If you are interested in history, you can look up the gladiators of ancient Rome. I thought of this while picturing the scene, it wasn't intended in any way, but it's there now. I think you're more familiar with the Roman Empire than you are with the Romanian states, so I'll only explain a bit about the later. _

_The second reference is Alexandru Lăpuşneanul - it's alright if you can't read it. There's a story that he was a pretty cruel ruler, spilling a lot of blood. While that's not unusual for the Middle Ages, he is known for that pyramid of heads he ordered at a banquet. Next, people revolted and asked for the execution of Alexandu's right-handed man (who also tried to cross him once or twice before). In the end, Alexandru was poisoned by his wife, so that his son could take the throne. This happened during his second reign, when he returned from exile saying something I will translate as "If you don't want me, I do [want you]". What you should know if you do look this story up - Romania, like Germany and Italy, is a pretty recent state in its modern form. Small states that now make up the country's regions united in order to create Romania. Moldova is in the north-east of Romania if you look on a map, between the mountains and Ukraine (the historical region, because now half of it is the Republic of Moldova)._

 _But enough with that, it was only a reference so you can take it as it is. As for the Dragon and Caterina, it's kind of a half-intentional ship, you know? I wanted them to be on the edge, but they crossed into the pathological - not a lot, but enough. Love is a very interesting feeling, often underestimated by those romance and romantic comedy films. It can go wrong in SO many ways... So I think I'm the one with issues to wrote this, haha. But considering the story, it's normal to kind of want to ship them. They will be the main focus for another two chapters though, because after that, Light will find the Death Note._


	22. XXI - The Chase

_XXI – The Chase_

* * *

In the outskirts of Tokyo someone was aiming for the stars. The Green Snake's owner was rubbing his hands together, watching the tapes that were to buy him all of Japan – for now. He wanted to try his luck with what he considered a small bet, the islands he had tried to steal but didn't succeed.

"He thinks he can take everything and step over everyone else… But I'll show him. I know what he loves most, and these are two things. His precious little girl, and his honor… his name. Whatever the difference."

The man was talking to his dogs, keeping one hand on the head of the one sitting beside him. He had three black dogs, but only one was offered the bigger bone. It was the Snake's belief that by favoring one dog over the others, it would become the leader of the pack. At the same time, he hoped to have at least one loyal dog by his side, literally.

"I'll take Japan from him, then Asia, and with that, there will be nothing in my way…" The man growled. He set an empty glass on a little glass table. Snapping his fingers, he ordered one girl to fill his glass again.

"And then…" he smirked, taking the glass and playing with it in his hand. "Then, I'll take his daughter. Be a good boy, and I'll let you crack his bones," he addressed the dog and continued to pet its head, chuckling.

The Snake pointed his finger at the girl that served him earlier. "Come here, Bunny. Come here and bring me that phone, over there."

According to different sources, the Dragon was still in China – though he was most likely preparing for something. The Snake knew the police was following leads – some of which he had sold them on fabulous sums – and he also knew it was only a matter of time before the old man made a fabulous comeback. He was not going to let that happen.

At the other end of the line, the Dragon was just about to shoot the phone and destroy it when it began to ring… Cautious, the Dragon pressed the green button and waited in complete silence. It took the Snake a few seconds to realize the conversation was on.

 _'So you won't talk to me…? You're replacing me, hah…? A really bad move in your situation, don't you think?'_

Immediately, the Dragon recognized the voice. He held the phone to his ear, so tight it was about to break.

"Speak."

 _'I've got a little something you may want. A little something that might stain your image… or rather, reveal it to the world. You're already stained, aren't you?'_

The Dragon growled into the phone. For once, something he had not planned was happening. The Snake was turning against him. No… he had been against him for a long time, only he hadn't been able to see it.

"Go on."

 _'Na-ah… Not so fast. Aren't you going to ask what I want first?!'_ the Snake hissed into the phone.

"What do you want?" the Dragon found himself asking.

 _'I have one word for you and a deadline. Japan. By September the first. I want the black market, the white market, the politics, the bank, the connections, the money, the hoes, the drugs - absolutely everything.'_

"If I say less…?" the Dragon tried to negotiate. It would mean losing everything he had built over the past decade in the country of the Rising Sun.

 _'Then I will sell the world two important things. One will be the tapes I have of your wife… You've trained her well! Really, I was amazed. It had been a few years since I had such a skilled whore. The porn industry could take some serious lessons – Oops! They no longer can. Seems the teacher is out of town, or this world!'_ The snake laughed at the other end of the line. _'Don't you dare hang up on me.'_

"…It was you… It was you, all along…"

 _'Oh, spare me the drama! It wasn't me – I was only a spectator. But I want my prize, Dragon. Do you hear me? And just so you don't call me a 'ungrateful bastard' – you had thirty seconds.'_

The very next moment, Caterina ran into the backyard where her father was supposed to destroy a phone he had used for a few days. She was out of breath, half of her face turning a dark shade of red and her lower lip bleeding. She slammed the door shut behind her.

"They're coming! We have to go!" she said in a low voice, running straight for her father.

"Who? Where is the King?" he asked her, already boiling with the wish for revenge from seeing his daughter bruising.

"Arrested. Someone turned us over."

Right then, the door behind her opened and masked men armed to their teeth burst through. The Dragon pulled his daughter behind him and put the keys of a car in her hand, using his other hand to shoot the enemy team. It was the first time he had to retreat – and it was even more humiliating than his worst nightmares of defeat.

Across the Pacific, a certain boss was receiving a live transmission from the scene.

"Is that the girl?" he asked into the microphone.

 _'A little bruised, but she's a beauty. And daddy's pride and joy,'_ the Snake laughed on a mocking tone.

On the screen, the man Ross assumed to be the Dragon was pulling the arm of an auburn-haired girl, stepping before her in a protective stance. Soon, the cops were falling over, dead or injured. The man didn't waste a bullet – they all hit their moving targets.

 _'So, do you want her?'_ the Asian asked from the other end of the line.

"She could make me some money… But she looks a little flat. Here in the States we like girls a little more feminine."

 _'Don't worry about that. A year or two from now she's gonna be the splitting image of his tramp. You know Sia… I've showed you.'_

A wide grin spread on the bald man's face. "Oh, yes, I know her…"

On the screen, the Dragon had ran out of bullets and was taking the remaining cops head on. He was breaking bones and twisting necks, acting more like an enraged beast than the calm man everyone knew him to be.

 _'She's already got her face, and I bet she's gonna have her body soon enough. All I'm askin' is some generosity.'_ To the Snake, this would have been a double opportunity. First, it would have been the finishing blow for the Dragon. Second, he could use the girl and get her in the 'industry'.

Ross lit up a cigar and grinned even wider. "You'll get your greens when I get my girl."

He had no rush - for Ross, it wasn't a pressuring matter. For the Snake on the other hand, it was a life and death situation. His reputation depended on the success of his mission. He had sent his best men after the couple and was determined to play each and every card he had left. After all, how much could it take to get past the Dragon? He was alone and surrounded – not to mention, aging.

The only option the Dragon seemed to have left was running away. He drove as fast as the engine allowed him, while Caterina curled up under the passenger seat. She could hear the bullets that reached the car. The window in the back was long gone and there were glass shards everywhere. Still, she tried to remain calm. Covering her head with her arms and keeping quiet, the girl tried not to distract her father. A split second of carelessness could cost both of them their lives when her father was driving that fast.

It wasn't for another half an hour before they got out of the city and away from their pursuers. The feeling of being chased must have been the worst she had experienced yet. Her little heart was trembling in her chest like that of a small rabbit that had just found a hole too small for the fox to fit through. Still, it was no guarantee they were safe.

"…Padre?" she said after a few minutes of driving through the silence.

"Are you alright?" He didn't take his eyes off the road, but looked a little less tense than before. He also looked tired, perhaps a year or two older. Everything was a bit too much, Caterina knew that, and was left wondering… if her father looked older after this past week, how did she look?

As careful as she could, she cleaned the passenger seat off glass shards before taking a seat. They seemed to be approaching a high way. Caterina didn't speak Chinese, she couldn't read the signs on the road either, but she trusted her father to know where to go.

"I'm fine, don't worry. How are you?" she asked quietly. Her father's shoulder didn't look good, covered in a lot of drying blood, swollen and bruised. Asking if he was alright would have been ridiculous. Even so…

"Don't worry." The answer was short and sharp. They entered a high way and the man drove at a constant speed. People were looking at them because of the horrible state in which the car was. Either that, or because of how they both looked, the girl thought. When she saw herself in the mirror, she froze. The right half of her face was bruised, her lower lip swollen and darkened, dried blood on her chin and chest. Her shoulders were bruising as well, but for now she was thankful she felt no pain. In biology they said the body does something tricky in order to survive – it releases adrenaline and a few other substances, she couldn't remember which, help numb the pain and keep her alert.

The girl looked outside the window, watching the sun as it set. She decided to ignore all of the questions that came to her mind. She paid no attention to any thought in particular, simply staring ahead as her eye lids became heavier. She may not care about her mother much, but she did miss the life she had before… It was all Vincent's fault! She cursed his soul and his bloodline, the living, the dead and the unborn. Cursed be all for what they did to her, to her beloved father and even to her mother…

The Dragon knew his daughter had fallen asleep. If he was tired, he could only imagine how exhausted she must have been, so he decided to stop at the first refuge he saw. It happened to be a motel that didn't look very frequented, but for one night it should do. The man stopped the engine and tried to wake up his girl. Poor child, she didn't even move. Instead, her head fell from the shoulder of the chair to that of her father.

There didn't seem to be any other car in the parking lot. Picking up his daughter using his good arm, the man went to check in. He was so tired, keeping his eyes open alone seemed to be a challenge. Clearly he was in no condition to keep driving. Had he been alone, this wouldn't have been a problem, but considering he had his girl with him, he couldn't afford such risks.

What the Dragon had not considered was that the Snake was more venomous than he first imagined. He knew the direction in which the two had left and anticipated where they should stop to rest.

After signing in the register, the Dragon received a room and the key. He went to find it and hoped there wouldn't be any insects, mice or other pest there. His daughter's arms went loosely around his neck as she seemed to be waking up for a short moment, only to fall back asleep.

When he opened the door and saw the inside, the man thought it was acceptable. He locked the door, let his little girl on the bed first, then crashed next to her. There were few things as sweet as feeling a clean bed sheet against your face when you have been spending your past week running for your life.

Only minutes later, the man woke up to the muffled scream of his Caterina and the door being slammed shut and locked. There was an artisanal bomb on the floor, in the middle of the room. Its clock was ticking in the countdown of destruction. Jumping on his feet, the Dragon looked around. There was nothing that could help him break down the door, unless… He saw the window as his only escape. Without a second thought and using his already wounded arm as a shield for his vitals, he jumped through. Outside, a car was rushing down the road and towards the high way.

Running back around the motel, he found his car wouldn't start. It looked even more chopped up than before – it didn't surprise him it was no longer starting. His only chance was to remember the plate of the enemy car.

Soon enough, the clock reached the final of its countdown and the bomb exploded, sending the motel into a huge cloud of dust and fire. Caterina could only watch in horror, tears running down her face. She had a cloth tied over her mouth and she bit into it, trying to hold back from crying.

The hands of one of the three men were on her ass before she could even realize what was happening. When she did however, she kneeled down on the man's lap, crushing his family inheritance. The man gasped in pain, his face turning almost blue from asphyxiation. But the girl's short moment of glory was done when she heard a gun being loaded and felt its cold touch to her temple.

"Now, now, princess. I suggest you just go along with it, if you know what's best for you," the one in the passenger seat said while grinning at her from behind a pair of sun glasses.

 _'I'd rather die,'_ she thought as she leaned against the door. With her hands tied behind her back, she still managed to unlock the door and roll out of the car. The girl came to regret her decision the moment she felt the impact with the asphalt. She had no idea how to fall in order to minimize the damage and she felt one of her shoulder and a few ribs bursting with pain.

"Shit! After her!" the one in the passenger seat yelled as the driver was trying to turn the car around. However, turning the car around on a busy highway was a difficult task, if not almost suicidal.

The girl's eyes widened when she noticed a car coming straight at her. The driver pressed the breaks so hard, she could hear that horrible screeching everybody knew. She began running towards the edge as fast as her bruised legs could take her, despising the rope holding her wrists tied together. The driver tried to change his direction and avoid the girl, crushing into the car of her kidnappers. A few other cars followed in what had became a fiasco.

A chain accident was formed in seconds, as Caterina was running back towards the burning motel. Her ribs cried in pain with every step, but the fear of being used by a bunch of men was terrifying enough for her to ignore the pain.

Back in Japan, the police were making progress in revealing the many identities used by Giuliano. Light was watching it quietly most of the time, asking insignificant details just so they would think he was interested in the mechanism of an investigation. He was much more interested in who the man really was. He looked at the way he had scattered his fortune all over the world – each identity he used held a few belongings and two or three bank accounts. Each identity was known to be very discreet and there were no obvious links between these other than the recent bank transactions. No common contacts or contracts, no partnerships, nothing that could give it away.

On the other hand, Light became interested in the person who had sold these names to the police. Under the pretext of going home early to do homework, he got away from the rest of the team. Using the lie that this was an important detail for the investigation, he tried to ask for the identity of the person who had sold those many names. It was an impressive list with not one fake lead. Someone must hate Caterina's father to do this… and also know him very well.

A week had passed and Light was secretly doing his own research on the case. To him, it was obvious the plane that had burned and crashed into the ocean had been the work of Caterina's father. He managed to find the list of its passengers and Vincent was there – Light even found the seat he had. It was terrifying how the man could operate. Although Light knew the man was leaning on many others for help, favors and deals, it was amazing how fast he could react. What he couldn't find was where the two were at the time. Not even the bank transactions represented a lead anymore. It seemed the police had lost track of the money – Light figured most would have been taken as cash and moved into new accounts, scattered between new fake identities. The teenager noticed Caterina's father was not a man to risk having many associates. Most of them were fictive.

A knock on the door woke him up from his thoughts. His sister opened the door and looked inside, uneasy and avoiding his eyes.

"Um… Light? You know, I'm not exactly good at math…" she began.

"I know. So?" he asked in return, waiting for the girl to enter and close the door behind her. It was an old habit of his – he never felt comfortable with the door of his room open.

"I, uh… had that test, and…" the girl swallowed her nervousness. To her, it was humiliating to go ask for her brother's help when she had been picking on him for studying too much ever since she could remember.

"Last week, yes. You mentioned it. How did it go?" His darker side was enjoying this. Sayu would have to admit her inferiority every now and then and if she came to him, it meant she was in a pretty sticky situation.

Looking away and holding her notebook a little too tightly, the girl began to speak faster, whining and protesting. "…I don't get it. What goes where? And how? Why? I have no idea what that dumb teacher is saying. I don't understand a thing! I tried, I only skipped one of his classes. I don't get it!"

"So you are afraid you won't pass, went crying to our mother, and in turn, she sent you here. Am I right?" A smirk appeared on Light's face when he saw his sister sighing.

Setting the notebook on his desk, she crossed her arms. "I just want to pass… I won't need any of this nonsense, anyway!"

At that point, Light was almost laughing. His little sister puffing and pouting while partly admitting she needed help was amusing. "Fine, we'll take it from the beginning. Bring yourself a chair from the kitchen."

"Can't I sit on yours?"

Both seemed surprised she had to ask. "You can bring some water too, since you're going there," he answered her. Sighing, Sayu dragged her feet out of her brother's room and down the stairs.

"Bring a chair, bring some water… what am I, his slave?" she mumbled under her breath, but did what Light asked her anyway.

Left alone, Light gathered a few papers and notebooks of his own and took them out of the way. He was done for the day, anyway. As he stacked his notebooks on a shelf, the news report caught his attention. He took the remote and turned up the volume enough so he could hear what the reporter was saying.

The images showed a chain accident on a highway in the South-East of China with multiple victims. _'So far, there are no deaths, but seventeen victims are severely wounded and their situation could change any moment. They have been taken at the nearest hospital where the doctors are trying to stabilize them. From the declarations of the witnesses, it seems a woman had jumped out of the first car that you can see behind me, the black one. The driver of the second car, the red one, said he had been trying to avoid hitting the woman. Could we have a case of kidnapping on our hands and a miraculous escape? Unfortunately, it is too early to say, as the driver of the red car is now at the hospital with multiple traumatisms. The man was conscious when he had been taken out of the vehicle, but could not feel his lower limbs. He was driving with his wife and two children.'_

 _'What about the supposed kidnappers? Do we have any information about the suspects?'_ the news anchor asked the field reporter.

 _'There were two suspects found in the black car, unconscious. Both are in critical condition and have minimal chances of survival. The paramedics had been resuscitating one of the two victims until a moment ago and it seems the efforts were not in vain.'_

When his sister returned, she found Light standing with the remote in one hand. She set the chair down silently thanks to the carpet, then leaned to the side so she could see the TV screen. Getting an idea, Sayu sneaked up behind her brother and tried to pour some water down his shirt. However… just as she was about to do it, Light turned around and caught her hand.

"Tag, you're it," he chuckled and took the glass of water from his sister.

"That's not fair! You weren't paying attention, you didn't hear me walk in-!" she tried to complain.

"I heard you coming up the stairs and knew how long it would take you to enter. When you were late, I figured you must have something in mind. Because I sent you to bring water, I guessed what you were going to do."

Sighing, the sister put her chair near his and sat at his desk. "Fine… no fun, then. Let's get this over with…"

Light muted the TV and took his usual seat at his desk. "First, let's set a few rules – and I don't want to hear you complaining or not following these. If you do, you are on your own."

"That's already a rule…" Sayu mumbled.

"I will explain one thing at a time, then we'll solve a few problems together. You'll be doing your homework on your own though – and I want you to ask your teacher to look over it during breaks."

The girl's eyes widened. "Wait, what…? You mean, talk to that guy during my ten minutes of freedom?"

"Exactly. This is to your advantage," Light began, trying to change the girl's attitude towards math so he won't have to play teacher for long.

"Surprise me."

"Well, the teacher will think you are interested in learning and improving – you don't have to be, just make him believe that. He will most likely start explaining better and with a bit of luck, if you are polite and start asking him something every now and then, he could even help you in tests."

"That's illegal and he's an ass, anyway!" Sayu protested the second Light closed his mouth.

"But teachers often do that when they see one student showing interest. Or they ask you something easy and basic in order to give you another few points, if you need it. That's not illegal, just a matter of choice."

After a moment of thought, Sayu threw him a suspicious look. "You did that…?"

"A few times, in middle school," Light admitted. "Or they intentionally overlook a few small mistakes – but they have to be small, and you must never brag about it to others."

"Because it's not fair?" she asked.

"Exactly. That's why you have to become friends with the mean and strict teachers," _'so I don't have to be one at home'_ , he continued in his mind.

That evening, the loyal driver of the Amadeo family had received a phone call. Judging by the number, the man thought whoever was calling him was using a public phone.

 _'The cruise had been canceled,'_ the voice at the other end of the line said. It was deep and a little hoarse. The man recognized it immediately.

"Where, Sir?" Communicating without too many details was vital when using a phone. The servant remembered the instructions received and went over them in his mind. It was a trait he had in common with the Dragon – his excellent memory.

As soon as he hung up, the man took out the SIM card and soaked it in a glass of water. That should destroy all electrical circuits. In a backpack he folded a change of clothes and a wig, along with a suitcase and his phone. Before throwing it in, the man looked through his wallet. He had his documents and a fake identity prepared since a few days before the Dragon left on a cruise with his family. Diego smirked – his employer had thought of every possibility and even in the worst scenario, he would not leave his loyal driver behind.

Before leaving, Diego took out the SIM from the water and scratched the golden part – just to be sure no information could be recovered from it. He had a flat in a hotel rented by the Dragon – nowhere near as luxurious as his own, but only because he asked for it. The driver offered to follow the Dragon out of gratitude, but didn't feel comfortable in a luxurious place. To him, it had to be more simple in order to become comfortable – a single room with a bed, wardrobe, table and chair, with a window and a door to the bathroom was more than enough.

After a last glance behind, he poured a bottle of alcohol in the middle of the room and set it on fire. It would serve as a sign to the world the Dragon was not dead – and neither were his people.

Dressed casually in jeans, a t-shirt and a hoodie, the servant walked to the train station. He would have to use a fake ID to cross the border, but until then, he probably had another few hours. On the way to the station, he stopped to buy another SIM to use while he was still in Japan. He called Misa – the girl had grown attached to him pretty fast and he thought she had at least won her right to know when she would be left on her own for a while.

"Did I wake you? It's Diego," he introduced himself.

 _'No, Misa was watching a film. How come Diego is not asleep?'_ she giggled at the other end of the line.

"Misa, Diego needs to do something very important, alright? I will be back, but I do not know when. It may be days, or it may be months."

At that point, the girl began to whine. 'What? No! Don't leave Misa alone~'

"Listen to me, Misa. I do not want you to go talk about this conversation to anyone. If you do, you may put me in danger, do you understand? I may not return to you if you talk about me to anyone you know – not your friends, not on TV, not anywhere. Alright?"

 _'Mm-hmm… But what will Misa do all alone?'_

"You will be alright, you are a big girl, right? Every two weeks, you will receive some money from you-know-who – try to spend them only for what is necessary." The man was growing more relaxed once he managed to receive a positive answer from Misa. He stopped at a traffic light, waiting. "I promise to contact you as soon as I can, but until then, be a good girl and remember what I told you."

* * *

 _ **Author's Note:**_

 _Chapter proofread by my lovely beta, **Eat4Fun**. And let me say, I am disappointed with how long it can pass sometimes without any **review** , PM, or anything like that. Thank you for follow's and favorite's though - and because there have been a few, I decided to publish this chapter even if the previous didn't get any written reaction.  
_

 _In other news, if you know -Man, go check out my dear friend's three-shot featuring Tyki Mikk and occasionally other characters, **The Embalmer** by **Blob80.** It's a creepy-cute tale with a very well-fit OC (as expected from Blob80) with mentions of madness and an atmosphere reminding me of the Victorian horror tendencies or Tim Burton's animated films. It's a strange romance with... I could say mentions of some gore and implied intimacy, though I don't think there's anything graphic. I won't spoil the ending, though it does have to do with necrophilia. Hopefully I didn't give away too much... _

_And while we're advertising, let me shoo you towards my Yu Yu Hakusho stories. I hope you are at least familiar with seeing Mandala on my profile - it's not on hiatus, I just have terribly little time to write and exams coming up soon. It's my first fic, so under those circumstances, I think it's readable. Wildest Dreams Come True is newer and I really would appreciate the support. Slow updates because of the same reasons above. But I'm a bit prouder of how it's turning out. Anyway, if you know the fandom, go check one of these out. Or both. I'll love you._

 _I have a new possible ship. What would you say if the driver / Diego would be shipped with Misa? It's not decided yet, so here's something to think about. Also, the next chapter will be the grand finale for this part. Part 3 will begin with chapter 23 and it will pick up at he beginning of the anime. But before that, the Dragon has a message to deliver - a very explosive one too. (Psst. It's already proofread, getting cold in the Doc Manager.)_


	23. XXII - Warning

_XXII – Warning_

* * *

About thirty years ago, a crime was committed. Diego had always suspected the reason his father had to go, but he never thought it important enough to risk asking the only ones who seemed to know. His young mother had raised him until his fifth birthday. All that she had told him was that his father had been a married man and that he had died shortly after his child was born.

The first time he met the Dragon, he feared him. The little boy had been brought into a dark office, surrounded by armed men. He remembered it clearly because it was something so new, so shocking, his young mind had been impressed for years. Everything smelled of smoke, leather and the perfume the Dragon was using at the time. Diego sat in his seat in the train, trying to anticipate how the man looked now. For some reason, he kept thinking about how he saw him then – a giant in the eyes of a child. A dark, grumpy giant with cold eyes and an apathetic expression.

 _'What's your name?'_ were the first words Diego heard from the man. _'From this day on, you will be under my protection. In a year from today, you will go to school and after that, you will be serving me.'_

That was the last day the child had seen his mother. Now, on his way to meet a weak, cornered Dragon, he tried to remember how he had been thrown into all this. He tried to remember the face of his mother – a beauty with dark flowing hair. Her image was vague in his mind. He remembered her hair because he loved it and he often played with it. He remembered her hair because it smelled so sweet and felt so soft… Because he had been looking for a woman like her in every single one he met.

In his mind, he was almost scared to imagine the man as he might find him soon… Perhaps his most loyal servant, Diego grew up to see him as the closest thing to family. Sometimes he thought the Dragon treated him like a son, but that thought began to fade when he saw how he had been spoiling his daughter even before she was born. _'She's got his blood, after all…'_ he thought, _'it shouldn't surprise me._ ' The Dragon didn't see him as a son, but perhaps as a brother… Yes, that must be it. A younger brother.

Diego looked at his watch. It was almost 1 am and he still had a long way before he would reach the border. Closing his eyes, he tried to fall asleep and ignore everything. His thoughts were unimportant, the conversation all around was too plain, and his memories were already fading. There was no reason to stay awake.

That night, Caterina wanted to cry. For once, she wanted to sob until her head would feel numb and her throat ached, to cry until she passed out. Not so much because of sadness and grief, but rather a cocktail of frustration and anger, of helplessness and self-blame. She ran back towards the burning motel as fast as she could with one shoulder and several ribs burning with pain, praying that her father had somehow found a way out.

When she saw him walking away from the parking lot of the burning building, she thought he was a ghost. She stopped for a second, almost expecting the image of her father to fade like smoke. But it didn't – instead, the man had opened his arms for her and in the girl's eyes, with the flames burning behind him, the Dragon looked like the devil. He looked like she had imagined a fallen, bruised, covered in blood and ash, angel of destruction with broken wings weighting him down, but still glorious in the way he stood straight on his feet. There was glory in being alive and they both knew it, only to Caterina, it was just being revealed. With the desperation of a baby holding onto a finger, she wrapped her arms around her father and hid her face in his back.

It was the strangest feeling in the world. Two weeks ago, he had been on top of the world, watching people from above and giving orders, and now… The Dragon thought he had never been happier in his life. He wasn't truly happy when Anastasia threw herself at his feet, nor when he was first saluted and someone had kissed his hand as a sign of respect. He hadn't been half as happy when he first saw what a stack of banknotes felt like or when he spilled his adoptive father's blood in order to wash clean his mother's honor. The man couldn't remember another time he had came close to that rush of excitement, that wave of gratitude washing over him as he thanked God and the angels for keeping his little girl alive.

Turning towards her, he cupped her face in his large hands and kissed her forehead. The past few days were the best proof Caterina had his blood pulsing through her veins – the blood of a fighter, a survivor. Side by side, they began walking towards their initial destination.

"Diego will be waiting for us tomorrow," was all he said. The rest was self-understood. They were going to be safe – no more risks for now. It was plain to see they both needed a break, a little vacation so they could just breathe. Asia was no longer safe for them. Caterina figured they were most likely on their way home – her father didn't usually call their driver unless they moved for at least a year. The Dragon phoned Diego and gave him the details when they first came across a public phone still functioning.

From that moment on, they bet on the kindness of strangers and the Dragon took care to always have some spare cash on his hands. They found people kind enough to give them a ride for some money. They also found shelter and food when needed. Unofficially, they were a family of three, Diego was Caterina's brother when they needed to go to some random nearby city for medical attention, or to meet with someone. The lies were diverse, flowing so easily from the mouth of the girl, people couldn't help but believe her.

Their servant was surprised by Caterina's ability to make up complex lies on the spot. She even acted them out so well, one could have swore she was some underrated actress trying to get herself noticed. In truth, Diego and Caterina didn't look too different. They could be easily seen as siblings thanks to their delicate skin and harmonious bone structure. But then, it could only be a coincidence – the coincidence of being born in the same country, of having the diluted Roman blood flowing through their veins.

By the end of the month, yet another successful investigation led by a mysterious detective in association with FBI members was announced on the news. The number and identities of the FBI members were not specified in order to protect them. As for the head of the investigation…

 _'…We can only assume the detective, who is undoubtedly a living legend, is the same genius who caught Bobby Boom last year and brought down the White Rabbit group three years ago. We are here with my guest tonight, who…'_

Light sighed. At last, the murderer that had terrorized LA for the past month was caught. He will most likely be given a life sentence in a top security prison. But what about all the others that were murdered every other minute?! Why did nobody talk about them?

It was only seven in the afternoon, but summer was over and the day was growing shorter. The teenager was changing channels, trying to find something on the TV that would distract him from his own thoughts. There was a wedding in their family – the daughter of some… cousin of his father, or something like that. Either way, he excused himself using schoolwork as a pretext. It was a rare occasion to have the house all to himself. Why exactly he needed that, he couldn't understand. Perhaps it was his darker side who enjoyed it just so he could feel in charge and powerful.

His phone lit up on the coffee table and Light heard the all too familiar sound of _'Ding!'_ , but he didn't bother to look at it. Wherever she was, Caterina was probably not going to contact him anymore. It was most likely another message from the phone company, meant to convince him to take the latest offer, change his phone, or buy something.

A few minutes later though, the _'Ding!'_ could be heard again. This time, he turned to look at the device for a few long seconds. It couldn't be the phone company, because their messages usually had a break of two to three weeks between one and the next. So perhaps… there could be a chance for the girl to contact him.

He picked it up and looked at the messages.

 _'Turn on your TV,'_ read the first, while the second was a cat emoticon. Light understood it was a coded signature and erased the messages. His television was already on, and since she had not told him what channel he should watch, the teenager assumed it was going to be something global.

A few minutes later, his screen went completely black. The image of a Chinese dragon appeared a few moments later and the voice of a man began to talk.

 _'This is a message to the authorities and to the underworld. When this transmission will be over, a warning will be delivered to all who dare threaten the Dragon. It is not an act of terrorism, but one of justice. Addressing all those unrelated to the guilty, do not pity them…'_

In every police station, panic was striking those on duty. In every house of the world, fear and interest were taking roots. Suspicion was everywhere in the thick air, as children looked at their parents and partners at each other, wondering who the Dragon was, and more importantly… who was he talking about.

 _'…All of those who will serve as an example for you are corrupted, greedy, and unworthy of living. The crimes they have committed against the Dragon are as follows…'_

Politicians were starting to sweat, watching the transmission breathlessly. Some were calling the secret services asking them to track down the signal, but there was no result to their struggle. The secret services were split - while some were trying to find out who was making the transmission, others were deliberately sabotaging it.

 _'…betrayal, thievery, murder, blackmail, abuse of power and disrespect. The Dragon would like to remind all in question of your ungratefulness. The rich and the powerful are encouraged to remember their origins and the help required and received from the Dragon…'_

The Snake was growling like a caged animal. "That son of a bitch! He's a fucking pest! Can't get rid of him!"

"What do we do now, boss?" one of the bodyguards asked.

"Fucking SHIT! That's what we do! Get my plane ready, you fucking moron! What else do you think?! Ha?!"

But just as the man was running to do as ordered, the Snake yelled after him. "No! Wait! He will expect me to go by plane. Get my car!"

 _'…This is a message to the relatives and the acquaintances of those in question. Because of the large number of individuals involved, the Dragon had chosen to spare those younger than the age of fifteen and women. The terminally ill and the elders past the age of seventy will also be spared, unless they had been directly accused of any or more of the crimes mentioned before. According to the sources, the number of individuals spared surpasses twenty thousand...'_

Ross was watching the transmission intently as well. He had not dealt with the Dragon directly, though he couldn't be certain of how he had been judged. The pitiful action of sparing women and children was laughable in his eyes, but he didn't have the time to mock his rival. He had to come up with a plan to escape, fast.

 _'…This is the one and only warning the Dragon will be giving before declaring war. Neither the mafia, the police, or the secret services of any country will be able to prevent the inevitable, unless they accept the conditions of the Dragon. These will be communicated in the following days. In the mean time, the equivalent of six hundred million dollars will be received by different organizations and associations of many countries to be used for unmasking the guilty to the public. In an act of kindness, the Dragon will share the fortunes of the guilty to the people of the respective countries.'_

The Snake was just getting into the car that was supposed to take him into the center of the city when the transmission ended. In his mind, if he had time to reach a large crowd of innocents, he would be spared.

The corrupted employees of the Dragon were trembling in their homes, watching as the transmission reached its end and expecting the worst. American associates were doing the same thing. Members of the FBI and of the CIA, associates of the famous detective, heads of police departments and the Interpol. Politicians were holding their breath in expectation.

Ross was in the underground of his base, secured in case of explosion. Jack, not allowed to hide there as well, was desperately trying to light up a joint, his hands trembling too much.

On his couch, Light was watching the screen intently. The Voice was more than thrilled to see something like this happening. Of course, the Dragon was not much better than any of these, but he was certainly doing the world a favor. It will be much easier to take down half of the system, once he finds the means.

The picture of a Chinese dragon remained on the screen a few moments more. In the background, there was music playing quietly. It was a chorus of angelic voices and an organ – beautiful, solemn and chilling. Light was able to recognize a few words in Latin.

In squares, people were waiting in tension. Every now and then, someone was losing their heads and screaming they were all going to die, running as fast as possible through the crowd.

Satellite images came on the screens, showing the future victims. Some were seen through the window while in bed, in the bath tub, on the couch, or sitting down for breakfast or dinner. A few were seen sleeping – alone or not – and others were seen driving, flying, or getting on board of private yachts. Some were in helicopters and private planes. Others were in the middle of nowhere, in houses built in the desert or in the mountains.

Those who saw themselves on the screen began to panic, screaming at servants and covering windows. A few fell on their knees, praying each in their own language. Some were trembling in shock, too frightened to do anything else.

Soon, a series of explosions had shaken the Earth. All over the North America, on the coasts of Central and South America, in every country of Europe, all across the west and south of Russia. China's most developed regions were next, along with Japan, the Koreas, Taiwan, the Philippines, India, up to the Arabian and the Muslim states. The north of Africa followed, then the south. Australia wasn't spared either. Planes in international spaces and yachts in the middle of the ocean were catching fire apparently out of nowhere, highways were collapsing and tunnels were turned into gateways to hell.

In the mean time, Light had risked calling Caterina on the number from which she had sent him the message. At first, she didn't pick up. Could it mean somebody else was pretending to be her? Anyone could type a text message, but it would take some effort to replicate her way of talking and her voice. Determined to find out, Light called again.

 _'Talk,'_ a male voice ordered Light from the other end of the line.

"Curiosity killed the cat," Light answered. He was aware Caterina was with her father, who was growing paranoid about possible threats, especially after what he had just done. He guessed by replicating something he had previously told Caterina, she would be able to recognize him.

 _'Is that so…?'_ Light heard the girl asking back with a hint of amusement in her voice.

"So my guess was right…" the boy chuckled.

 _'So why did you call?'_

Light felt something in the tone of her voice that made him smirk. That girl was as good as his, and so were her daddy's influence and money. "Should I hang up? I was expecting a warmer 'hello' after all this time, maybe even some 'I miss you'…"

 _'Don't push it, sweetheart,'_ she purred from the other end of the line. _'Daddy's right beside me, you know? I can't lie in front of him.'_

Light chuckled. "So that would have been a lie? Ah… What a pity for the poor student without a car and an Italian villa. I forgot it's the cold you prefer."

At the new base center, in an isolated villa in the south of Italy, Caterina frowned and sighed. How could she forget? Light seemed to enjoy hitting those sensitive cords way more than her.

"…I hate you," she eventually mumbled.

 _'Do you?'_ Caterina heard him using that trick again… That almost sincere voice.

"We both know you probably called to check if it was really me sending the texts. And you probably have another question, sounding something alike to _'why'_. So…?"

"So…? Why did you want me to witness all this?" Light asked in return, grinning widely. Caterina changing the subject was a clear sign of victory in his eyes.

 _'It was only an invitation.'_ It seemed her cold tone was back. _'I thought you wanted to see it.'_

"Where are you now? Anywhere near Tokyo?" Light asked.

 _'No… I can't tell you, and even if I could, you're too much of an ass.'_

The boy chuckled. "Right. Then, you're on your own."

 _'What do you mean?'_ she asked immediately, falling into Light's trap yet again.

"I could tell you, but I'm an ass, right? And you're such a lady…"

Caterina rolled her eyes at his sarcasm. "Do you have anything useful to say or not?"

 _'I do. But what do I get?'_

"First, what's the source?" Caterina asked, earning herself a look of approval from her father.

 _'I had been on the investigation team in the case of A. I have information on all of those involved. So…? What do I get?'_

The girl looked at her father and he picked up the phone. "Name your price."

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by the beta **Eat4Fun,** also the last chapter of the second part. I know it leaves a few loose ends, but I'll tie them up in the beginning of the third part. It also means Light will be finding the notebook during the next chapter. Also, here's a small spoiler - the Voice in Light's head appeared as a response to trauma. It's not canon, but there are no perfect families (in case it wasn't obvious by now), and besides to me, it seems to make sense. _

_I sure hope you will find this believable! There will also be some new characters - at least one canon and one original, both of which will be influencing the story and giving Light some headaches. And soon enough, in another few chapters, we'll be welcoming one of the most loved characters of this fandom, the one who sweetened this show and made most (if not all) fangirls shed a tear or two when he passed._

 _Thanks Jupiter's Bull for reviewing. In the beginning, when I first created her character concept, Caterina was a lot more alike to her mother, allowing feelings to influence her more than thought. However, if I wanted to place her between the Dragon and Kira, I needed to make her more alike to her father - she still acts on impulse, not thinking she may break her own bones when she jumps, but she is not overwhelmed by fear and panic._

 _Also, in case there are any -Man fans here, I'll send you to **Blob80** 's story that I mentioned before, **The Embalmer.** It now has an epilogue which sweetens the original ending. Very in-character, very heart-breaking and very tragic. The creepy-cute feeling from the beginning grows into a heart-wrenching romance in no time, so subtle you will find yourself caught up in the middle. If you don't know the fandom, it's still worth checking out because you don't need much background to understand it. _


	24. XXIII - Rebirth

_XXIII – Rebirth_

* * *

Exactly thirteen months after the warning given to humanity, the Dragon was reclaiming the insular country. In truth, it was turning into an obsession. Japan may not have the glorious monuments of the Roman Empire, the fantastic paintings of the Renaissance, or the tastiest recipes of pasta, but from an economic point of view – it could easily become the most shining stone on his crown. The only disadvantage would be the country's ridiculous military force – though his native Italy wasn't any more proud with its armies either.

The Snake was dead, or so the Dragon had been informed. Unlike Vincent, the remains of the Snake were never found and presented to the man. Caterina believed he had simply burned to a crisp and she could be right because there were six or seven skeletons unidentified by the legists. Yet, the Dragon refused to believe it.

Returning to the capital, the Dragon had contacted Misa. A surprising move that Caterina despised, but he wanted the blonde to advertise for a few of his companies. She had become quite popular in the past year, and after her parents had been murdered, the girl was left vulnerable. Caterina understood, but never openly agreed. The man offered Misa an apartment and a contract with a manager he knew. Misa was going to make her debut as a singer in October.

The investigation of Anastasia's disappearance had been sabotaged. Many corrupted officers had been caught, but unfortunately, it was a minute too late. All information regarding the Dragon and all of his aliases had been permanently erased from the database of the police the moment the first officers had been caught.

Light continued to volunteer on some minor cases every now and then. His father was ensuring his access to these kinds of investigations, mostly cases of theft. The Chief had made up his mind to not let his son on anything big again. The greater the case, the more dangerous it proved to be. Yet, there were plenty of minor cases for his son to use as experience. Vandalism, theft, street fights – light crimes.

Caterina also started school while taking private classes of Japanese in parallel. She had been quick to spark the interest of many in the institution of both sexes. Questions were asked all around from her origins to her morality, but the girl seemed to be enjoying the attention. Much was rumored about her, but not much was known for certain.

Everything seemed to be returning to a state of balance… One afternoon in November, Caterina texted Light during class. His eyes must have become distant, because the teacher noticed him not paying much attention.

"Yagami? Are you still with us?" the slender man called, raising a pair of bored eyebrows at the student. Light sat up in his seat. "Can you please translate the following sentence into English?"

With a sigh, he looked down on his textbook, stood up and began translating aloud. "Follow the teachings of God and receive his blessings; and so it shall be that the seas will again become bountiful, and the raging storms will subside."

The teacher nodded and Light sat back down. The lecture was a bore and gladly, the last one of the day. As soon as the teacher began to read again, he looked at his phone and read a simple _'Tea after school?'_ from Caterina's newest number. Light had lost count how many she had changed it over the past year. Over twenty, for certain. Almost every call had been from a different number.

In his head, the Voice was anything but excited for Caterina's company. Her father may have paid him for some information, money which he would keep in an emergency fund, but he began to feel like the girl was playing him too much. He didn't want to waste his time and energy on her – and why would he?! Light knew he could have any girl he wished. Besides, life with Caterina would be hell.

 _'I'll pass,'_ he texted her back. As expected, he didn't receive a reply. Silence was enough for the Voice to understand he had managed to offend the red-haired girl.

Soon enough, the bell rang. He gathered his things, put his bag over his shoulder, and headed towards the main stairway. Everyone was going to push forward in a desperate attempt to leave the building as if it was on fire or worse. He decided to wait for a few minutes until the crowd would become more airy and the stairway more spacious. There were a few accidents that could result in one's death that the Voice was imagining, which really didn't help Light calm his mind at all.

He eventually made it to the ground floor and decided to play it nice and let a girl to his right walk out first. He stepped aside in a quiet invitation.

"I'll pass," Caterina mumbled and looked down at her phone. She was texting someone, inserting many emoticons and throwing half smiles at the inanimate messages of the other.

"Excuse me?" Light asked, just to make sure.

"I'm waiting for someone," she said in a plain voice, raising her eyebrows as if to ask him why was he still there.

"Really? Is it your girl clique?" the student asked on a mocking tone.

Caterina rolled her eyes and smiled. "Someone who won't _'pass'_ me. Now please, stop trying to look important. If you don't want me, I'll find a billion who do."

Light leaned on his elbow over her, catching the auburn-haired girl in a corner. "Question is… Can you find someone you will want, as well?" Though smirking, he was boiling with rage. "Don't forget, I know you."

Then, Caterina did the unthinkable and caught Light's red tie with her both hands, tightening it around his neck. "Careful, darling. If you knew me, you would know I'm not an option. Never was, and never will be."

Light chuckled, feeling the tie slowly strangling him. He stepped aside and out the main door, loosening his tie a few meters away. The girl had managed to oppose him – enough to spark his interest. Though if that was the game she wanted to play, the teenager was willing to beat her at it.

Just out of curiosity though, he entered a nearby shop and pretended to be looking around. His hands were going through the pages of some magazine, while his eyes stayed on the road. Who was this one that Caterina had already found as his replacement…? Someone less brilliant, for certain. He was the top student of his school. Anyone else must have been below him. The thought gave him hope, but he still needed to see his competitor.

In the mean time, Caterina was wrinkling her little nose in impatience and restlessness. How dare he – imposing his superiority in public! And the other one – where in the name of her father's God was he?!

A moment later, the boy walked up to her. "Hi! I'm sorry for-"

"You're late." The girl's accusation seemed to discourage him on the spot. A clear sign of weakness in her eyes.

"I was-"

"Stop excusing yourself. Someone had already managed to ruin my day. So, how do you plan on making it better?"

"Well, I was thinking… maybe we could go to the park?" he suggested, already feeling rejected in a very nasty way.

"And do what…?" Caterina asked, already walking ahead and having the boy hurry after her.

"Um… We could… feed the ducks?"

"Save it for your retirement. How about some tea and a movie afterwards?" the girl asked, passing by a few small stores.

"Well, uh… yes, I think that's great! But I'm not sure I have enough…" he mumbled, scratching the back of his head and grinning apologetically. Light observed him from afar. His palms were sweaty, he was having trouble finding his words and obviously annoying the life out of Caterina. Light thought about her for a moment. Did he love her? Did he hate her? Perhaps both.

With an eye roll and the upright palm which she used to shush her butler, Caterina shook her head, sighed and walked away. Light smirked. He knew the other student. Intelligent, but emotional. He probably had a chance to fight with Light for the best score in school if he hadn't panicked whenever he saw the subjects. He was also quite bad at public speaking. In other words, intelligent but by no means a competitor. He was too weak for Caterina.

As he walked home, Light began to think that perhaps, the girl liked it as it was. Maybe she wanted someone to dominate her, to dare her, to make her uncomfortable and force her to push her limits. Or perhaps she had no idea what she wanted… But one thing was for certain. Both of them had a few things in common, among which the black-and-white view of the world and big dreams of changing it according to their beliefs.

Caterina took a cab to her hotel. She paid the driver, then took the elevator to the top floor. Surprisingly, her father was in the gym on the same floor. The entire level had only one apartment, a gym, and a pool. It must have been expensive, but it wasn't like they were in danger of bankruptcy anytime soon.

"Home so soon?" her father asked while pulling himself up in one hand. He had weights hanging from his ankles, making the effort even more intense. The man was covered in sweat. Caterina could see his veins pulsing from afar.

"Yea…" she sighed. "I'll be back in a bit." She walked out of the gym and into her room, leaving her bag and getting into a pair of leggings and a sports bra. She had just turned seventeen in the summer and had to get used to wearing bras. A drag, really… but a necessary drag of society and fashion.

When she returned, her father was lifting himself using his other arm. He seemed to be having some more trouble than before. Caterina began stretching. "Is it a good idea?" she asked. "Is your arm fully recovered?"

The man let himself fall on his feet and untied the weights from around his ankles. "It has to be. Three months are more than enough."

"You're still sore… Am I right? A bullet wound isn't a cat scratch, Padre."

Had it come from somebody else, the man would have responded in a violent manner. But because it was his daughter who was worrying about him, he sighed and continued working out. "It should be, by now. But let's leave this matter for later. How did your day go?"

The girl took a few moments to reply, finding her balance and standing on her hands. "It went fine…"

"Calling me out for hiding the truth implies that you didn't," her father replied casually.

"Alright, it went pretty bad. Not horribly, but bad. Light is acting like an ass again, so I tried to go out with another guy." She stood straight again, then flipped back on her feet and fell back into a bridge. "He's not an idiot, but he babbles. He's poor, doesn't know what he wants, and doesn't take what he wants. Unattractive."

The man smirked and put his legs over the horizontal pole. Bending his knees, he let himself hang for a few moments before doing a few abs. "That is closer to the truth."

"Hmm…" the girl responded, standing up and going on the running machine. "I think I hate him, Padre."

He chuckled. "Keep him around and observe. It may all be a game, like those you enjoyed playing with every boy who tried to approach you in the past year."

"But this is different. It annoys me!" she whined. "I care what he thinks, and it's driving me nuts!" In all her rage, Caterine began running so fast she was having a hard time complaining and breathing at once.

"Men will often do that. I did it. He does it, too." The man was back at doing his abs, keeping silent count of them.

"You? And did you care about the girl?" Caterina asked between gasps.

"Not even once… No. There was one time," the Dragon corrected himself. "There was a woman I wanted, but could not have. I was young, perhaps around your age."

"How was she?" his daughter asked, finally slowing down the running machine.

"Beautiful, independent, and a little nuts. You see, men, like me, like a woman who is unpredictable, who ruins our plans, who slips through our fingers. But they are rare… So rare, I had spent my whole life trying to find a second one like her." The man had a smirk on his face. "And I think there is a chance I found her, eventually…"

"Is that so?" the girl asked, but her father just chuckled. "You're not going to answer me, are you?"

"No… This is for you to figure out. Your homework for tomorrow." Once he had his feet on the ground, the Dragon went to the punching bag and cracked his wrists and fingers before starting to hit it stronger and stronger.

"You're full of sweat, with your arm in pain, yet you never seem to pant…" Caterina noted. "How do you even do that?!"

"Practice, my love. Practice and discipline," he answered casually.

The next day, Light sat in class, once again bored out of his mind. There was really nothing to do but listen to some lecture that would have made more sense if the teacher had simply given them a bibliography to read instead. He was trying not to look too distracted as he stared outside the window. Earlier that day, he saw Caterina talking to yet another student from their school. Light didn't know this one personally, but he saw him around most of the time.

He competed with Light in the unofficial game for the 'most loved' title. He challenged Light at tennis a couple of times, managing to end one tie match and several defeats. He was more of a social type – intelligent, but not really motivated to get the top scores. A year back, he barely passed three of his classes… Yet, if Light considered his grades were because he refused to hand in projects and homework on time, but he still managed to pass, it was an admirable performance. Sort of… The top student had no thought of trying anything alike, not even for the experience of it, but he knew from others it was difficult to pass when in his situation.

The main reason this one threatened Light as a possible competitor was his attitude. He was even more shameless than Light, openly flirting and dropping inappropriate jokes. He pranked the principle earlier that day just to earn a laugh from Caterina, openly confronting and crushing authority. To Light, this spelled war.

But then, something fell just outside the window. 'A notebook?' the Voice asked inside Light's thoughts. Immediately, he thought somebody must have thrown it from a window or from the rooftop – there were students who skipped classes usually went for a smoke and a nap – but the trajectory would have been different. This notebook fell straight to the ground, apparently out of… nowhere.

When the classes ended, Light looked for the black-covered notebook. He found it in the grass, exactly where he thought it would be. Looking around, he picked it up with curiosity and amusement.

"Death Note?" he read its cover aloud, chuckling. "As in… a notebook of death?"

 _'Open it! Look through it. How odd…!'_ the Voice immediately replied. Through Light's eyes, it read loudly in his thoughts, _'The person whose name is written in this notebook shall die.'_

Light was quick to discard it, thinking it no different from a chain letter. Yet, the Voice convinced him otherwise. _'Take it! Just in case… What would you do if it fell in the wrong hands? Perhaps it's not true, but what if it is? You will have a mass murderer free on the streets. How do you even prove such thing?'_

After a few moments of debating with his darker self, he turned back and took it. Light put the notebook in his bag and went home like nothing happened. He exchanged a few words with his mother, blocked a comment or two from his younger sister, then went to his room to examine his finding.

Caterina went home as well, but this time she had the strangest smile on her lips. She tried to hide it, but it just kept resurfacing on her face like oil through water. Her father noticed, though he only returned to their home at sunset.

"His name is Shin…" she answered the man's question as they ate together. "He's a bit of an idiot, actually. He put a toy snake in the principle's car and he freaked out so bad, he crashed his car into a tree."

"An intelligent idiot, I hope?" her father intervened.

"Hmm, I think so. If he's not interested in something, he doesn't even try. On subjects he likes, he's unbeatable. On others, he barely passes the year. But I talked to him and he doesn't seem to be an imbecile."

"That is no guarantee, my love. True, an intelligent person will be able to pass for a fool when the situation demands this. On the other hand, many fools try to appear intelligent and fail miserably. But there are a few right in the middle that can appear intelligent at first – those who know their only chance to impress is working on their acting skills." The man looked quickly over the heads of the other people at the hotel's restaurant. He did not see anything suspicious, so he turned his attention back on his daughter.

Even if she despised being wrong, her unreadable expression seemed to hint that her father's words had reached their target. She was reconsidering her first impression of Shin, going over every small detail she had previously chosen to ignore.

"He is unpredictable…" she mumbled after a short moment of silence. "And just like Light, I have a difficult time 'reading' him."

"Does he have the same personality switches?" her father asked.

"No. Rather, he only lets me see what he wants me to see, which may not always be the truth."

The man nodded. Following the death of Anastasia, the two left had been growing even closer to each other. They shared most of what happened every day – an opportunity for the Dragon to advise and warn his daughter. He kept her as far away from his world as possible, but he wanted her to become used to his style of thinking and acting. In his opinion, precaution and sharp observation were key in keeping any group under control.

"What about Misa?" Caterina asked. Surprisingly, after the blonde had lost her parents, the two had began to show signs of tolerance towards each other. "Have you heard anything from her since the last time?"

The Dragon responded with a small smirk. "You know very well she will do anything to avoid me. She keeps in touch with you more than she does with me."

"With me and Diego," the girl corrected her father and smiled. "They get along, don't they?"

With a nod, her father agreed. The driver had that calm and sometimes goofy attitude that made him very easy to like. It was exactly what a childish girl like Misa needed after such an unfortunate event. Pitying her, Diego secretly asked the Dragon to serve Misa whenever he or Caterina did not need him.

After a few moments, Caterina pushed her half full plate to the side. "…I can't eat anymore."

The man noticed, but decided not to worry about it. Caterina had been eating less than usual for the past week, but her father thought she simply wasn't hungry. Everybody knew it was some kind of fashion in schools for students to eat together, hungry or not. "Very well. What do you want for dessert?"

A quick glance down helped her make up her mind. "Cherries will do. Sour, if possible." She glanced up to see him watching the waiter. Her father seemed a little impatient, but the girl was glad he didn't catch her staring at her thighs. When she stood, it wasn't that obvious, but when she sat, her thighs expanded a little bit. She could no longer sit with her knees touching and a small space between her thighs, not since five or six months ago. It always reminded her of her mother. Was that why women prefer skirts and dresses? To hide how fat their thighs become with puberty?

That evening, she went to take a shower and stared at herself in disgust. Although she ate half as much as she wanted, her lower abdomen still looked fat and bloated. Poking and pinching it, it didn't feel like fat. It was a little hard, like a muscle… And it hurt. Sharp pains had been bothering her for the past two days, but they were easy to ignore before. Now though, it felt like someone was stabbing her lower abdomen, her back was numb, she felt like she was about to puke, and her head was starting to ache. Her chest was unusually sensitive too, so much that she began to hate even her favorite bras. They were all too uncomfortable, too tight, too… something.

The girl put on a very soft tee, the only thing that was kind of comfortable, and went to lay in bed. Even her underarms ached, but she didn't have any red spots from shaving. Sighing, Caterina turned on the TV and tried to find something worth watching and distracting. It hurt so bad, she curled up between pillows, holding her knees close. She had an idea of what might be happening, but still hoped it wasn't it.

Laying in bed, Light stared at the ceiling. The Voice was convinced the notebook could be used for their common dream, though Light didn't really agree. Murder is always murder, no matter the circumstances. But what about self-defense? What about defending someone else, an innocent? With his first test that afternoon, Light realized the Death Note was real. It couldn't have just been a coincidence, right? The criminal died just forty seconds after he had written his name down. Reports an hour later said it was clearly a heart attack, confirmed by the legists. No, the Death Note had to be real. It was the only plausible explanation.

The lights were off and the house, quiet. His family must have already went to bed and in a way, so did he – except Light couldn't sleep. Was he a criminal…? Was he turning into the mass murderer loose on the streets the Voice warned him about? Serial killers often had a profile of the victim, they all had something in common. For him, they would all be criminals. But… didn't that make him the worst of them all?

 _'But if not me… then who?'_ the Voice began in his thoughts again. _'Who else would use it for good?'_ In truth, history books were full of leaders applying the capital punishment. It had been so used and accepted, it seemed only natural to eliminate murderers from society in order to guarantee safety for everyone else.

On the other hand, history was hardly ever fair – and anyone who had paid attention in class knew it was the winners and survivors who wrote these books. Politics and money could influence history so much, future generations would be left defending the mass murderers and condemning the victims – torturers turned into heroes… It was what happened every time. Well, at least for the past two thousand years that one could still find in books. The public assassination of an emperor, the execution of a royal couple, the blame that fell on a child unfortunate enough to be born at the wrong time… Nowadays, it was the same.

Hours after the Dragon had slaughtered so many people, he was glorified in the press and the media as some dark knight of humanity, some hero of our time. All he did was say those he killed had lived their lives in corruption, manipulating the masses for their own good. What the people couldn't see was that the Dragon was doing exactly the same thing. Just like in the past, under the rule of a much too powerful emperor. No trial, no chance for forgiveness. They all burned on their way to the afterlife simply because one man in the entire world was pissed off.

Sitting up, Light looked over to his desk where he had left the notebook open, his mechanical pencil resting between the pages. He could… couldn't he? Who would even suspect such a way of taking lives? He knew the man's names – one of them had to be true. He could simply write all of those he had been using. Or not, he could write the name that owned the yacht. That was most likely the real name of the Dragon.

Sitting up, the Voice seemed to agree. He bent over his desk, picked up his pencil, then set it back down. What about Caterina? The teenager sighed and covered his face with his both hands. The girl probably never killed anyone. Threatening and manipulating into getting small favors wasn't a crime – not really. But if she was to be left alone, who knows what she could do? They were too alike…

For once, the Voice was quiet and seemed to be analyzing the situation. Light wished the Voice would just tell him something, give him a reason… but it didn't. Caterina wasn't that much like him, she was more alike to the Voice in Light's thoughts. If he was to put her in hot water, leave her alive with her heart broken over her beloved father, how dangerous could she be…? Then, there were the many servants and connections of the Dragon. Caterina would take over in an instant. The second she wiped her tears, her plan for revenge would begin.

That second, a cold chill went down his spine. There were few female killers, but those who were, they barely showed remorse. Women, if they ever turned to crime, were much more precise. They knew who they wanted dead and they knew how to do it.

 _'Kill her too,'_ was the first thing he heard from the Voice in the past ten minutes. Light refused before he could even put the thought into words. _'No… Not yet,'_ the Voice agreed. _'Not yet… Think.'_ That moment, even if he didn't want to envision it, Light was aware one day he will die. Or perhaps someone will catch him and put him on the death row. If that happened, and if he managed to keep Caterina close until that moment, then she would continue his work.

It was a men-ruled world. Nobody would suspect a woman to continue his work, so she would have that advantage. The girl was arrogant, but not stupid. She was pretty intelligent and with lots of power at her fingertips. With the death of her father, she would be left with her part of the world. It was a really nice set of opportunities. Life had dealt her some of the best cards. Yes… Both Light and the Voice could envision it. If he kept her close enough, she could take over when he fell.

Looking outside the window, Light decided he would spare the two. He would have more chances to succeed with Caterina on his side, she was valuable. Her father was rotten to the core, but Light had to tolerate him. The man had a very risky lifestyle, he surely won't be alive for much longer. When that happened, he may even have a chance of taking over through Caterina… There were many opportunities Light didn't want to miss – neither side of him.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun** \- as usual. And also the first of the third part. The only reason I keep all parts in one story is that I have no idea for a good title for each - in case you haven't already noticed the parts don't have titles. This one will probably last until another important character (or more) will die. _

_About Anastasia, I thought it would be obvious she wouldn't survive for long in the story. She was a nice touch of light in all this darkness, but I could not see her following her husband and Caterina after the butler's betrayal. She can still appear in memories. As for Vincent, his ghost might make an entrance. I've been thinking of some relatives, since the Dragon did spare many when he gave the warning - but that's no promise. I will take note of your preferences, **lilrilakkuma.** As you've probably noticed, the remains of the Snake had not been found yet. I'm not saying he's still alive, but he hasn't been confirmed as dead either. _

_Since I'm giving away a few things here, let me assure you, **Jupiter's Bull,** Caterina isn't in this story to outwit L. That's not her role. She is not a ship for L either, nor Near or Mello, so it wouldn't make much sense for her to magically guess Light is Kira. Suppose Caterina does figure out Light is Kira - it doesn't help the story much. And she's not at that lovesick level that would make her into Kira's marionette (at least for now), so even if she knew, Caterina wouldn't help him. But that doesn't stop some thoughts of Light to go down that road and consider it a real possibility. And Caterina has no idea how close to death she really is. _

_Well, until next time, I'm glad to see you are still reading and I'll be waiting for more reviews. Follow, favorite, message me - I don't mind it at all._


	25. XXIV - Rumors

_XXIV – Rumors_

* * *

Mornings could easily be the equivalent of hell for some. Add a strange dream you can't remember, burning pain in the lower abdomen, and having a very annoying song stuck in your head that is, in some way, related to that dream and you have the recipe for a cringe-worthy wake-up call. As soon as the auburn-haired girl went to the bathroom, she knew the most fun part of her life was officially over. Sighing, she thanked her doctor for warning her about it. At least she didn't have to yell for her dad to go running to the nearest store and buy her pads. That would have been awkward…

Self-control was the only reason she didn't look so panicked on the outside. However, inside her mind, behind her usual slightly ironic smile and relaxed pose, Caterina was freaking out every time she sat down or stood up.

Of course, Shin noticed something was up right away. The boy was poor, working to support his two younger brothers who will be starting school soon. If he wanted the quick and easy way to a good life, he had to pay attention – and he did. The boy approached Caterina during the second break. He found her in class, sitting at her desk and staring outside the window. It was quite unusual for her to be seen that way, so he sat in front of her.

"Morning, sunshine!" he said in order to catch her attention. In return, Caterina gave him a little smile and a sigh. "…Is that all?"

"Yeah… I'm not feeling well," she answered in a plain, tired voice.

To Shin, this was a sign the girl was growing a little more comfortable around him and perhaps willing to be a little honest. He knew Caterina was good at acting and usually wore her smile like a mask. There were many girls who did it, so much Shin had learned to identify them as actresses at first glance.

"What's wrong?" he asked, apparently worried. "Did your boyfriend do something?"

The girl frowned in confusion. "What boyfriend?"

"You know, Yagami. I mean, that's the rumor, that you're going out." When he saw her sighing and rolling her eyes, the boy changed his approach. "I know, rumors are stupid, but when people don't know you, they're going to assume things… That's why I ask."

"He's not my boyfriend, we're not dating. We just happened to meet when I first moved here," she tried to explain their complicated relationship in a few words.

"I see…" The boy understood quickly enough that whatever happened was not something Caterina wanted to discuss and neither did Light Yagami, so he decided to change the topic. "By the way, where did you say you're from?"

"Italy," came the short response. "I don't think I mentioned it before."

"No? So that's why I couldn't remember it," Shin attempted a joke, "I have this habit, you see. I like to know where everyone is from, I think it influences people a lot – and I'm not talking about skin color. I talk about mindsets, habits, quirks, all kind of ideas that we pick up from others."

Her smile returned as Caterina looked at Shin with a hint of curiosity. "Oh, really? How do you think it influenced me?"

Of course, it wasn't difficult to foresee this following question, so Shin had already prepared an answer. "For instance, I see you drinking coffee more often than tea, or you speak more openly and accept compliments without turning into a blushing, babbling mess."

Caterina chuckled. "I didn't think anyone would think of that. I mean, in Italy, it's perfectly normal."

"That's what I am talking about. You see, foreign students are always more interesting." Shin was glad to see some progress. With a little bit of luck, if he played his hand well, he could use Caterina's material situation to benefit himself and his brothers. And besides, the girl was pretty. How difficult could she be? Shin really didn't mind a possible relationship.

"Is that so? Then why not go abroad?" she asked.

After a split second of panic, he smirked and leaned closer while looking around. "Don't tell anyone, but I have a job in town." He knew that for westerners, closeness was not a taboo. They didn't mind being a few inches from someone, contrary to how sacred personal space was for some Japanese.

"So you're working and studying at once, in high school?" Caterina had heard such stories before, but usually about college students. It was impressive, even if she didn't want to use the word.

"That's right. And I plan on going to To-Oh University after graduation." Shin noticed the girl was interested to find out more. He observed this technique of a book character in some novel of Murakami… but somehow, Shin couldn't remember the name of the character or the title of the book. By not saying much about himself and only giving girls a few hints about his life, that character managed to seduce any girl he met into his bed – so much it had became a matter of choice. Shin didn't necessarily do the same, but he thought he could use the same strategy in grabbing Caterina's attention. For him, it was a matter of need – a race to get the prize before his time would run out.

Shin thought about his two younger brothers all the time. If he didn't have enough to send them to school, that would be the greatest failure of his life. As a last resort, he thought about dropping out of school and working full time. Now though, with Caterina being single and rich, he may have a chance to a better life for all three of them.

The more he thought about it during the next hour in class, the more Shin began to like the idea. The girl was pretty and she had a sharp mind. Getting along shouldn't be that hard – he even thought there was a chance for them to actually fall in love. At the same time, he had to think about a safety net and keeping his expectations realistic. What if it didn't work? He did hear from some colleagues that they saw Light and Caterina much too close to be "just friends" the other day.

At lunch, Caterina looked for Shin, but didn't see him. He was probably skipping the rest of his classes, yet again. She sat down with a few other girls calling themselves little divas, all enjoying their little salads and pretending it was good. Bullshit. A salad without any oil in it was nothing but sour from all the excess lemon juice. Eating it every single day was enough to turn it into the most disgusting lunch – it was probably why some girls gave in to sin. Today, Caterina saw another one buying herself a muffin. She was kicked out of the group immediately and the auburn-haired girl watched as the others began expressing their hate towards the weak one. This morning, she was part of the group, encouraged, loved and supported. Now, the girl was an outsider, a fallen… Pathetic.

Their lives were a constant diet. _'It's the only game where you win when you lose,'_ as Karl Lagerfeld put it. Caterina never really understood the meaning, but the struggle was real. She was one of the girls who didn't want to grow up, simply because the Chanel jacket isn't suited for women with boobs. Simply because girls must be like kittens – small, frail, adorable little toys. As she looked at the girls in front of her, she remembered the words of a glorified character from a movie about the fashion industry. _'I'm on this new diet. Actually, I don't eat anything and when I think I'm about to faint, I eat a cube of cheese.'_

When she stood up, the girl saw everything fading to black. A loud ringing in her ears made her freak out for a bit. Her hand reached for the edge of the table. Gladly, the moment was just that – a second of not being in control. As soon as she swallowed her saliva a few times, the ringing stopped and her vision returned. Her head was light and heavy at once, a very strange feeling she didn't remember. It was probably the first time it happened… The first of many. That's what the older girls said – it was normal, no need to worry. Caterina drank the little water left in her bottle and went to buy herself another. It would be the third that day.

She saw Light going to class and he turned to look at her. Panicked, she turned to talk to the nearest girl of the unofficial club. She wanted him to be different, warmer, more open towards her. She longed for those late nights on the phone and sneaking out for a walk at midnight and a cup of tea while contemplating life. There was something dangerous that sent chills down her spine whenever she remembered his sudden mood swings, like a switch had been flipped and he was a different person. There was something warm and relaxing in being alone with him in a public place, safe and not really, sipping hot drinks, staring at the people on the street, turning small talk into philosophical debates of ethics and politics…

Around the same time the fourth class of the day began, Shin was just checking in. He was working for a company in the Yotsuba corporation. For the next few hours, he will be loading trucks. It wasn't like he was going to be alone, but… being the youngest in the team, the other men usually let him work more.

Shin didn't drink. He didn't smoke either – he could not afford it. Card games and shogi were only allowed during the short break they had in another six hours when he would have a chance of getting some extra money in his pocket. Sport matches were another occasion to raise his income, but only during that fifteen minute break. There was also a catch – someone up there in the hierarchy of the company hated useless subordinates. None of the lazy could last for more than a month. Shin had already a year since he had been working there.

"How's school goin', kid?" the supervisor asked him as he stacked packages in the first truck that day.

"Doing great, I'll pass the year fine," he answered with a smile.

To the supervisor, it was difficult to imagine Shin in school. He was used to seeing the kid covered in sweat, wavy black hair sticking to his forehead and neck, the same shirt sticking to his back. He had the same pair of jeans he wore to work, a little too big for him and held in place with an old belt. Though when he thought about it, the man could see that Shin didn't want to ruin his school uniform – if the kid was willing to work at that age, he probably didn't afford much.

He watched him catching packs thrown at him by the others and stacking them together perfectly, loading truck after truck with never-ending energy. The man thought about doing something good and writing Shin's name on the promotion list this year. The kid deserved a raise – he worked without complaint, always there on time, and he respected authority. The supervisor wasn't very educated. Actually, nobody there was. The schooled people were in the office, they didn't even know the face of their subordinates. The man smirked. He had a boy about the same age as Shin – a problem kid, stealing, drinking and partying in strange places with strange people. He would have liked to have a child like Shin. He hoped to see him working in an office one day – clean and easy work. In his eyes, Shin didn't fit in the lower class of society.

During the last class, Light sneaked a text for Caterina. Although nothing more than a _'Hey'_ meant to catch her attention, he was expecting an answer. He was well aware he may lose her for good if he didn't take immediate measures. Caterina was probably mad at him – he could see it in how she looked over him in the crowd then turned to talk and laugh with some other girls. She ignored him and perhaps he deserved it – even if his darker side didn't even want to think about the possibility. Either way, she seemed to have found someone capable of replacing him, which was not something he had planned.

Caterina saw the text, but didn't reply right away. She thought about why would Light text her at the time. He didn't come up to her for a chat the whole day. He was certainly after something… Question was, would it be worth it to chase her curiosity this time? There were already some rumors surrounding them as a couple, and going out now would only give people more reasons to talk about it. The girl decided to ignore his text.

It took Light half an hour to understand he won't receive a reply. In all his bitterness, his darker side thought about leaving the girl be. Or perhaps he could kill both her and her daddy, leaving nobody to seek revenge. Once the bell rang, with a slight frown and more quiet than usual, Light gathered his things and dragged his feet down the hall. Again, he was one of the last to walk out of the school and was surprised to see Caterina walking much slower than usual.

"Bad day?" she asked when she noticed Light catching up with her, though without much enthusiasm.

"Something like that," he answered, "Are you waiting for someone?"

With a shrug, the girl shook her head. "Are you?"

"…You have no right to ask," Light answered, trying his best to sound calm. Still, anger was present in his tone and in his eyes. Aware of that, he looked over his shoulder, past Caterina, at the ground, anywhere but at her.

"Oh, I see… But you do, for some reason."

Boiling, he breathed in and out before answering her. "You dare say that?!" he asked in a low voice.

Caterina rolled her eyes. "If it's about Shin, you have no right to ask."

"Right." Taking a step away from her, he turned back to look at her. Caterina was watching him with the same green eyes that tried to look indifferent, but begged to be heard. "What's with that look?"

"You know… people talk, and they're saying we're together."

"I heard. You said we're not, so what now?" Light returned her question from a year ago.

"I don't know, guess I haven't planned this far," she replied with his answer from the same past conversation and a weak smile. "I was waiting for you to tell me, but you asked if I could find someone to want me." She shrugged a little, "Well, I think I did."

Light stared at her for a moment, trying to understand. "You're going out with that loser to prove to me you could replace me? And with him, too?"

She had that bitter smile on her face. "Well… You told me I couldn't. I proved it to you, I can."

Sighing, Light's mind tried to wrap itself around her words. The Voice had given up the idea of getting rid of her again, turning back towards using Caterina as a back-up. Shaking his head slowly, a half-smirk showed on his face. "I didn't think we were still playing games," was all he managed to say.

"I don't know, are we? You tell me. Because I'm confused. You come to me and leave again. You take me back and forget about me. What do you even want?" she asked him in all her bitterness and frustration, though using a voice so weak Light barely heard in the loud buzzing of the street.

"We don't have to… You know, we can leave the games." Light began walking again, but this time took her hand and pulled her along. For a moment, he saw Caterina surprised by the gesture, right before she gave him a half-smile. "Where do you want to go?"

"I don't know…" she mumbled. "White Elephant?"

At the same time, Diego was at the airport, waiting for a certain businessman to arrive. He was just returning to Japan after graduating from Harvard and working as his father's subordinate for two or three years. Diego looked at his watch – it was almost 3 pm. He looked around for anyone eyeing his sign, but didn't see anyone. He checked that he held the paper right and looked at the name – Namikawa Reiji. The driver remembered someone with this name being a very valuable contact of his employer. Whenever they were in the States or when this Reiji would come to Italy, they helped each other out and discussed financial matters. Diego assumed Namikawa was the son of that man.

Soon enough, a tall young man in his late 20's walked up to Diego and nodded shortly. "Good afternoon. I assume you are the driver sent to expect me?"

Diego instantly labeled Namikawa as _'pretty boy'_. He probably had the face of a girl until his late teens and was wearing his dark hair a little long, reaching his shoulders. "I believe so, sir. May I ask who are you here to meet?" Diego had thought about it many times. What if someone else pretended to be the one expected? These scenarios were risky exactly because of how vulnerable his position was.

"A contact of my father. It would be best not to use names in a public place like this." With the reply, Diego knew he had the right man in front of him.

"Of course. Please follow me, sir." The driver helped his employer's contact with the luggage. Diego carried a bag and a suitcase – he thought pretty boy would at least take his suitcase to the car himself, but he showed no intention. Holding back a sigh, Diego put both the bag and the suitcase in the back of the car and opened the door for pretty boy to get in.

"Do you have any special requirements about the hotel, the room, meals or anything of that nature?" Diego asked as he sat in the driver's seat and turned on the engine.

"None that I have not mentioned before. I hope your master took care of that." There was something in the tone of his voice that made Diego wonder if the pretty boy saw him as any different from a dog or a slave. Probably not, now that he thought about it.

"I see." It wouldn't be the first time Diego disliked the associates of the Dragon, but he had no say in it. Pretty boy must have been smart to get his ass out of Harvard with a diploma in his suitcase, it was probably why the Dragon needed him. Though from what he remembered, the loyal driver of the Dragon thought Reiji the elder was much more sociable and less stuck-up than Junior here…

With a few notes about illusory expectations, Diego drove to the hotel and stopped the car at the entrance. He opened the door for pretty boy to take off, gave him his suitcase and a lobby boy the bag, then went to park the car. Immediately, he called his employer.

"Pretty boy is here," he said the moment the Dragon picked up.

 _'Pretty boy, you say?'_ the man asked back with a hint of confusion.

"You know, Junior. The American…" Diego tried to hint who he was talking about without giving too many details. Names were something to be avoided over the phone.

 _'Yes. Anything else?'_ It seemed the Dragon was having a good day, he was calm and patient for once.

"Just called to ask if you want me to do anything else today. I thought of taking a few hours off."

 _'Stay around town, I may need you later this evening.'_

After a very grateful _'Thank you, sir,'_ the Dragon hung up. So, Namikawa Reiji was there… Good. The man stood up from his bathtub, rinsed, dried himself and went to choose a suit. As he was putting on his pants and securing the belt, the man noticed his arm still a little sore. About three months ago, he had been caught in a rather heated discussion… Had he been younger, that would have been long healed. Now though, it still hurt whenever he flexed his arm. He had to take certain things into consideration, age being one of the most important, his daughter just the same… Had she been just a little bit older, he could have arranged her to marry someone like Namikawa – intelligent, a born strategist with a brilliant mind, from a good family with a considerable fortune and influence, someone who could take over when he was to fall…

The more he thought about it, the more he wished he had Caterina a few years earlier. The idea of spending his last few years as a retired man watching over two or three grandchildren, drinking soda in the garden of a beautiful villa on the western coast of southern Italy… That idea seemed much too far for him to ever reach it. Yet, it had caught roots in his mind and was growing more and more with every month.

The man put on his shirt and buttoned it. His tie was next. Why was there such a great age difference between these two? There had to be about 11-10 years between Reiji's son and his daughter. His little girl was too childish, she still had a lot to experience and learn before she could keep a man entertained. It wasn't only about sex, it was about conversation, about spending time… The Dragon wouldn't want his little girl to have a loveless marriage where she served the same purpose as a whore, to satisfy the needs of a man who would leave the room as soon as it was done because he couldn't bear to listen to his much younger wife talking.

On the other hand, what could be expected from the boys Caterina found attractive at her age? They were smart, with questionable manners, with some education and no real fortune that could contribute to his own. They couldn't be considered very responsible either at 17-18 years old. Give a teenager from a lower class family a thousand dollars for the week and they would have no idea what to do with it – they might even get themselves killed, getting involved with the wrong people and with no experience in certain situations.

The Dragon thought about Light. Brilliant, indeed, but that wasn't enough. He was unpredictable, much too dangerous for him to even consider leaving everything to Light. The fact that his daughter didn't forget about him during the year they spent away from Japan was worrying him. She was in danger of being used and couldn't see it.

In the mean time, Diego was driving to where he knew he could find Misa. He considered her childish behavior an effect of her family disappearing so suddenly from her life. The girl had been heartbroken, if she admitted it or not. The driver had come to know her well enough back when she worked with Anastasia, he could tell when Misa grieved. Now, he hoped she would still be as open and friendly towards him after being more or less on her own for a year.

The man ringed the bell. He could hear music from inside, so he assumed Misa was home. He rang the bell again. Because he had been traveling, Diego had to change his number a couple of times. He had lost her number one of these times, along with other contacts – yet it was the first time he regretted it. Following the Dragon with such loyalty, he could not take roots anywhere. He had to remain anonymous, changing his identities according to the situation.

Eventually, he heard someone at the door, but it still didn't open.

"Misa, do you remember me?" he tried, "I told you I didn't know when I'd be back. I know it's been long, and you're probably mad, I just-"

The moment the door opened, Diego found himself taking half a step back in order to maintain his balance. The girl had her arms around his neck and her head on his shoulder, jumping into the embrace without a word.

"Misa thought… Diego wasn't coming back," she whined on the edge of tears.

Once he realized what had happened, the driver pat her back and waited for Misa to let go so he could actually see her. She was in a pretty short… dress? Was that a dress, or just a little longer top? Her hair was messy and she didn't seem to be wearing makeup. Diego thought he could get used to seeing her like that – Misa looked much better without her makeup, going all-natural.

"Now, I promised you I'd be back, didn't I?" he smiled, glad to see the girl was alright.

She nodded her head fast, wiping away tears. "Misa didn't expect anyone today." That was probably an excuse for the slight mess that was her apartment. Well, once she let him in, he could see several shoe pairs not very ordered in a corner and some clothes thrown over the back of an armchair in the living room.

"That's alright. How have you been? I heard the news, I'm sorry for what happened," he began. Diego noticed right away Misa seemed a little thinner than before.

"…Let's not talk about it, alright?" she said with a wide smile that threatened to break any moment.

"Of course. How about I take you out and we'll talk about something else? Like your new contract."

"What contract?" Misa stopped on her tracks to look at him with wide, curious eyes.

"Oh! Silly me, I shouldn't have said that…" Diego pretended. In fact, he really shouldn't have mentioned it, but thought it would be some good news to cheer her up. "You know, Caterina's father will probably ask you to advertise for one of his companies tomorrow or so."

The moment she heard it, Misa squealed and clapped her hands together so fast, the driver wondered how many times she had practiced it. "Oh, that's great! Misa would love to! It's been almost eight months since Misa last had a photo shoot."

"I thought you'd be glad to hear about it – but don't tell the man I told you, alright?" With a wink and the illusion they were some sort of partners in crime, Diego managed to get a very excited nod and the promise to keep it a secret.

"Misa doesn't want Diego to be in trouble!"

"I know. Now, get dressed. We'll go out and celebrate, alright?" Diego watched Misa going into her room to get dressed. He mentioned it was "a little cold this evening", which meant a change of outfit for Misa. She came out and went to the bathroom at least three times, wearing three different outfits.

To Diego, it was amusing how much thought she put into everything. Did it really matter? Who would see her, anyway? Still, he waited patiently in the hallway for her to get ready.

Diego didn't really know what was their relationship. He wondered, sometimes… He was the driver of a man that most of the world wanted dead. This meant he had a pretty risky job. It meant he would have to disappear every now and then – for a few days, a few months, maybe over a year at a time. He didn't really have much to offer. Misa didn't seem to mind, though. She was pretty and fun, innocent in some ways and still a child, despite being in her 20's. She was natural in front of the camera and that could be her ticket to a pretty easy life.

He felt sorry for her parents. Although he didn't remember his mother well and never got to meet his father, Diego still suffered when he heard she had been killed. It was a heavy blow for any child, much more so if both would disappear at once. The man could only imagine how Misa felt. Well, if he hadn't been there for her when it happened, hopefully it won't be too late to help her get over this unfortunate event and look forward to a brighter future.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun,** as usual. Also, you probably noticed it took me a while to post this. Expect slower updates because I need more time for schoolwork and therefore, I have less time to write. I will be back in a bit, so don't worry. It's NOT a hiatus, just a major slow down. Thanks for the reviews, PMs and support, by the way. Keep doing that and as soon as I find the time, I'll write some more. _


	26. XXV - Promises

_XXV – Promises_

* * *

The restaurant was full at the time the reservation had been scheduled. The only free table was their's as a waiter led the Dragon where his youngest associate was waiting. The man could easily understand the nickname given by his loyal driver – he really was a pretty boy. Certainly he was one of those often mistaken for a girl until puberty gave him a slightly masculine appearance.

"Good evening, Namikawa." Because he had a close business relationship with his father, the Dragon took the freedom of addressing him in what would have otherwise been considered a very rude and disrespectful way. Either way, the Dragon was superior to the one sitting at his table, so he could afford a less formal approach.

"Good evening, sir." It was easy to see the other one was nervous and a little irritated by the use of his first name. Even so, he was doing his best to keep a straight face, showing nothing of what he might feel.

"I asked your father if I could borrow your brilliance for a year or two," the Dragon began on the same relaxed tone. "You see, I have been experiencing some problems with my companies, so I decided to hire some new experts."

The waiter approached them and asked a little hesitantly if he could take their orders. The Dragon already knew what he wanted for dinner, while Reiji's son took a few moments to skim the menu before deciding.

"Back to more serious matters, I am willing to give you a rather high status for your age. I understand you only have a few years of experience, but I trust you to use this opportunity well." The Dragon had his old friend speaking very fondly of his son.

Taking his time to consider the offer, Namikawa began questioning the reasons of the Dragon. "With all my respect, sir, why do you consider me the right choice for a supposedly important position?"

The Dragon chuckled. "My subordinate who is responsible for the Asian branch of the company is weak. His illegitimate son will have a similar position to your's starting tomorrow, despite lacking the qualities or professional skills required. It seems to me the reason my profit is dropping at such an alarming rate would be poor management of human resources. Because you are young, I believe you have not yet lost the flexibility of a young mind. You see, this is something I have been noticing for the past few years – the young are more innovative, more resourceful, open-minded. I hope your brilliance and American experience will help my companies avoid a possible crisis in two years from now."

Immediately, Namikawa understood the situation was bad. If the man who owned the Yotsuba group - including about one hundred brands - was now anticipating a crisis in two years, then the numbers were not at all in their favor. Then, there was the head of the Asian branch who didn't sound like a professional. This meant he had an opportunity to rise to power in a very short time, perhaps as soon as two or three years from now.

"I will consider your offer, sir. If it is not too late, I would like to announce you my answer tomorrow," the younger man said with such calm, he looked almost inhuman.

The Dragon had a thought that maybe his daughter would compare him to some immortal movie character, looking much younger than he was and with calm, mature eyes. "That would be alright. I need your answer before the end of this week," the Dragon answered. It was already Friday.

"Thank you," was the short answer the Dragon received.

"Tell me, please, how has your father been?" The man had only a few he held close and he often tried to keep in touch with these people.

"Not so well lately. He is a suspect of cancer, though we will not have the results until the end of this month."

The news hit the Dragon like a bullet. He didn't seem shaken, but it hurt to know an old friend might disappear before the end of the year. Cancer was horrible, the most lethal assassin… and in their case, it might be cause by constant poisoning over the years. But would Reiji really not notice such horrible doing from anyone living under his roof? It was difficult to believe.

"I apologize and I will pray for his health. If there is any way I may help him or his family, please tell me."

Namikawa was not expecting such an offer. In truth, he did not really know his father's associates, but he would have never expected one of them to appear so concerned over his father's health. "I will. Let me say I appreciate the offer."

The elder nodded slowly. He may not say it, but he never forgot how much Reiji the senior had helped him in the past. Gratitude and loyalty were two of the most important values in life for the man and he always made sure to respect them.

Their dinner was brought to the table and served as they continued to speak of the Yotsuba group, of Namikawa's specialization, and the Dragon's suspicions of incompetence. It was why he intended on 'cleaning up' the most influential posts in the group, leaving each to reform one aspect in return and take care of their subordinates. In other words, he was hunting for young experts to revive all aspects of the corporation he owned.

To him, it was vital to know each important subordinate – and he knew his well. He knew their families and professional evolution, found out of their affairs and dreams, and often met with each one for dinner.

In a way, Shin was his subordinate as well, though not of the important ones. He was simply a number, a name on a paper at most. The break came at six, a few minutes later because the truck had to be loaded full before they afforded such luxury. The boy barely felt his arms, but he knew nobody there would help him in any way. No need to complain.

When most had their dinner packed by their wives, or lovers, or daughters, Shin had a bag of salty pretzels. He came to hate the taste, but these were the cheapest food he could take with him. One bag would get him through two days. Even if he wouldn't feel full right away, after a small bottle of water, he would.

"Hey, kid, wha'cha lookin' at?" one of his team mates asked.

"Are those cards or money?" he grinned, eyeing the man's back pocket.

"Yea, I've got some cards. So what?"

By that point, everyone was paying attention to the two. "Let's play," was the boy's obvious invitation.

"Yea, right. You want me to believe you have anything to bet?" they began mocking him.

"Go home, kid. Tell your momma to give you enough to eat," said another.

However, Shin took out of his pocket what he had won that day during the first period on the school rooftop. He was confident he would win much more during the remaining minutes of their break, so he put all he had on the table.

"What's it gonna be?" he asked with a wide grin, waiting for the others to decide the game and how much would they each bet. Shin was a cheater, but a very good one. He could count back four years since he had last been caught, though everyone suspected it at some point or another.

The supervisor watched as they all lost from the very beginning. If Shin was really that lucky and skilled or if he was cheating, he couldn't tell – the man had been watching him but saw nothing suspicious. Even so, in about ten minutes, the kid had made five times the money he bet.

"Alright, time's up! Let's get back to work," he said as soon as the game was over. They still had a lot to load, and Shin had to deal with everyone's hatred and frustration for having lost. But he was pleased. Perhaps tomorrow he would have enough to take Caterina out, without going through a small financial crisis. If not, he could always save the money for darker days.

Little did he know the assurance he heard from the girl that morning was a lie. While Shin was breaking his arms and back to afford taking her out, Caterina was already out with the one she would have swore is not her boyfriend. If someone told him about it, Shin would have swore it was a lie… But girls lie all the time, mostly to themselves.

Caterina was no different. She was well aware that Light will probably never be serious about it, but she still wanted to taste it while it still last. Their relationship was on a high way to disaster, but bittersweet like chocolate cake at midnight.

She held her mug between her hands, fingers laced and dark red nails shining in contrast to her light skin. Light noticed how she had changed during the one year they haven't met in person, but kept talking on the phone and sending texts. Sometimes they would keep in touch through the entire day, other times it could be weeks before she contacted him again, changing her number. He watched her taking another sip from her still hot chocolate, pressing her lips together because of a drop picked up a moment too late.

"How have you been? And where, if you can tell me?" he asked.

The girl still held her mug with her both hands in hope of warming them up. It was a new problem for her that her hands only seemed to get a little bit warmer during steamy showers and sweaty dreams.

"Everywhere," she answered with a smile, but continued before Light could get upset for her being so vague. "We went from one end to the other of China, then crossed over to Europe through Turkey. We cut it short over the sea until we reached Italy and from there, we were as good as home."

"But why didn't you warn me about it? And what happened to the yacht? The investigation had been cancelled, somehow…" In truth, Light had his theories about what may have happened, but he wanted to hear the truth.

"Well, Vincent was working for someone else. He stole my phone, I still don't know about the information on it… You know, recordings of him not being the most decent around my mother, pictures of cars in which my mother went for a few minutes, then walked out as if nothing happened, addresses, car plate numbers, phone numbers… I had yours, among others." She tried to explain.

"Then I should change it… Why haven't you told me before?"

Caterina shrugged. "I didn't think it was important. My father thinks the one who hired Vincent is dead, so we should be fine…"

"But you don't," Light continued her phrase for her.

"No," she answered before sipping from her hot drink. "You see, they found Vincent's remains, so we know for sure he's gone. But they didn't find this guy among the victims. There were about five or so who could not be identified, and… Well, he could be among these or he could have survived and gotten away."

Light nodded, staring down into his tea cup. "And your mother?" he asked, looking up to see Caterina frowning slightly. She turned to look away for a moment, then pressed her lips together and rolled them out into a pout.

"…I hoped you wouldn't ask," she eventually mumbled.

So she did care about her at all… Light hadn't expected that, but in a sense, he should have. Naturally, a child will care about the mother, no matter how many unforgivable mistakes the mother could have made. "I'm sorry."

"You're not, so don't say you are," she immediately replied on a bitter tone.

"I'm not sorry for her, I'm sorry for you. You're grieving," he said softly, reaching out and grabbing one of her hands. She held his back and sighed.

"I shouldn't be, but… I guess it has to be done. I'm mad at myself because I didn't stop it from happening, even if I saw it coming. I know it's useless to waste time with should, perhaps, and if, but sometimes it won't leave me alone. This idea that I could have stopped it from happening…"

He listened in silence and felt himself becoming calmer. Light didn't really get to see this soft, fragile side of her and in a way, it made her look so much more ordinary, like any other young woman having lost her mother. She skipped the three days of tears and hysteria and went straight to the silent acceptance of the facts. But would she do the same for her father…? Neither side of Light could be sure.

"But now, you're back. Does your father still have business in Japan, or…?" Light didn't want to get drunk with illusions of the girl returning there for him, but it was a thought that wouldn't leave his mind.

Caterina gave him a small smirk. "Why else? It's always business. You didn't think it was my idea, do you?"

Light was tempted to get mad at her words, if it wasn't for her tired, green eyes staring at him, speaking the exact opposite of her mouth. "You're lying," he smiled.

"Maybe. Girls lie all the time, don't we?" she smiled back. "No, I didn't ask him to come back here. It reminds me of what happened. You know, first the robbery, then the cruise… But I didn't protest when he said we're coming back. I just asked him to stay at a different hotel."

"That sounds closer to the truth," he commented. "So it's just the two of you now?"

Caterina nodded. "It's so quiet… Sometimes I get home early and he's not there. The apartment is completely silent, and cold, and lifeless. I hate it. It's like in those movies when the psycho is hiding behind the door, or the devil is looking through the mirror. Sometimes… I feel like I'm going insane, alone in a huge, empty space."

Light sighed. "You know you can call, right? I may not always be home, but if I am, we can talk. Or I can come over, if your father still hasn't found out about… that day."

Without even thinking why he might bring it up now, she shook her head. "He hasn't."

The Voice was pleased with her answer. She played her part well so far, not realizing to him this was a direct invitation to do anything he liked. As long as her daddy didn't know, he was safe – and if she didn't tell him for over a year, she won't start talking to him about it now. She seemed more mature now, but in a sense, Caterina was still a scared, lonely little girl struggling to find her balance.

"But… just so you know, I didn't like that," she woke him up from his reasoning.

"That what? A lot happened that day," he smirked.

"That snap, like you turned a switch off and you were a different person." Caterina snapped her fingers. "You made me feel small, helpless. I didn't like that."

He smiled. Perhaps she really did grow up a little bit. "Alright, no more of that."

For a moment, Caterina stared into his brown eyes, trying to read him. Did he mean what he just said? It seemed a little too easy how she managed to get that promise from him. He looked honest, but Light could put on a front that showed whatever she wanted to see. He proved that many times… Then, how could she possibly tell the difference?

"Good," she smiled weakly.

"We could do something else, if you want," Light suggested, still thinking about that certain day.

"What do you mean?" she asked, though the girl already had an idea about what he was going to say.

"Something less… aggressive. Something you would like, I hope."

Caterina smirked bitterly. "So now you care about what I like…" After a moment of silence, she continued. "I will soon get used to this softer, warmer side of you. I don't want that."

Light was surprised – honestly. "Why not?" he asked in sincere confusion.

"Because you are not serious about this. We will never be together, and if we will – it won't last. This thing between us is too strange, too complicated. You will get tired of me, or I will get in your way, and do you know where we will be headed then? You will call me crazy and slam the front door, I will cry and throw myself on the bed, and we'll both drown our sorrows the way society tells us to do - with alcohol and sex."

Light gave her a half-smile, uncertain, uneasy. For once, he was afraid this really could happen… It sounded like them to fail so miserably, because they were both so cruelly ambitious and with conflicting interests. "What do you want, then? Caterina…"

It was one of the rare occasions when he called her name, so she looked up. For a long moment, she stared into his brown eyes. The girl knew the answer, but didn't want to say it. "…I don't know," she eventually mumbled. "I guess you could say that I want the world, but then… not really. It would mean huge responsibilities."

Light smirked. "I suppose the greater the throne, the heavier the sword hanging above the seat. Even so, there are always people fighting for the damned chair."

"And there are so many…" she sighed, keeping the same bitter smile spreading and fading from her face. "Everybody wants it."

"Like you…" he chuckled. "Like you and me, am I right? You know, there are usually two golden seats in any throne room."

The girl shook her head. "I don't think I want this. My father has the throne now – you witnessed his power, I made sure of it. I did it for my pride, but the point is that you saw it. He put on a show on the scene of the entire world… What you didn't see is the price."

Her last word caught Light's interest like nothing she had said before. In truth, the world had no idea of what were the consequences of the ones they envied. His darker side fell silent, waiting anxiously for the girl to continue. "Which is…?" he urged her when a couple of seconds passed them by.

Caterina didn't look into his eyes. She avoided him entirely, but still, she answered. "…Scars, Light. Cuts and bullet holes mark his body, broken bones and muscles ache all the time. Threats – he can't trust anyone nowadays. He even suspects his most loyal connections of betrayal. Almost every day someone threatens him, after every execution it's coming from someone unexpected. The authorities are no longer on our side, and… perhaps they never were." She stopped for a moment. "There were times when we shared a room, or a train compartment. I never caught him sleeping, just slumbering for a few minutes with his hand holding a gun. At this point…" A cold chill ran down her spine. "At this point, I'm afraid not even his god with an army of angels and saints can save him anymore. This is what it means to have the throne. It's destroying him."

Light looked away as well. Well, perhaps he should have expected this… Though it still hit him hard, like a slap in the face. He never really thought about the ugly face of ruling the world, of reforming it. That might actually be him in a couple of years. Alone, paranoid, damaged on every possible level and barely holding onto what little sanity he will have left at the time. "But I won't be alone," he mumbled to himself. Everything was easier when you were not alone, right? How different can reforming the world be from… the class president title in middle school? Except they would have no choice but to listen to him this time.

"Careful with that… my dear," she mumbled back. For the first time since he could remember, Light saw Caterina asking for the check and paying for her own drink. "I'll call Diego. You can come too, he won't mind giving you a ride."

For a moment, Light thought she was inviting him over, but it seemed the only thing they will be sharing will be the back seat of a car. "Actually… how about a movie? We could go home, we don't always have to go to your apartment."

The girl thought about it. "My father would be worried. I don't want to upset him," she eventually answered. Soon after that, she took out her phone and called her driver. This gave Light some time to think. The Dragon must be really paranoid to convince Caterina to stay safe and was very likely that her father didn't trust him.

 _'That's highly improbable,'_ the Voice tried to assure Light. The Dragon didn't have surveillance cameras and spies watching him, so there was no way the man would know about the Note. He was no psychic capable of reading minds, either. Powerful as he was, her father was still a man and nothing else – he had no way of knowing about Light's recent finding.

Light was right to suspect the man's growing uneasiness, though. The Dragon's layer was threatening to collapse, burying him alive with his wealth. It was how he felt, staring at the clock and wondering where his daughter was. He knew very well her independent spirit loved to stray, to explore new places and people, to get lost in conversation. Even so, it was hardly the time for that.

When he got a phone call from Diego, the man's heart stopped for a moment, aching as it beat again. His throat and chest were tight with anxiety and worry. "Yes?"

His relief did not last for long. The familiar carelessness in Diego's voice was gone and his laughter felt strange, almost strangled. _'Oh, hi! Yeah, it's me… Y'know… Thing is, I'm sorry, brother.'_

Panic pushed a cold sweat through the Dragon's skin. "What happened? Where are you?" he tried to ask as calmly as he could, but his calm was running out like sand through his fingers.

 _'Brother… For once, I'm scared,'_ the driver said through the phone, _'There are two cars following me. You know, she called me. I can't go pick her up and I don't think I can stop anytime soon. I'll try to get rid of these trash bags, alright, brother?'_

The Dragon stood up the moment he heard about his daughter, putting on his shoes and taking the keys to a recently bought car. It was supposed to be a back-up, but at the time the man could not trust any of his employees.

About an hour ago, he received a picture of Caterina and Light talking, taken from where the waiters usually stood. On the back it read _'Sinners'_ with a stylized capital S. The man had been waiting for any sign from his daughter, too afraid of disturbing her with a call. He wanted to trust her to handle potentially sticky situations well, though he was aware this would be extremely risky.

 _'I will go now. Where is she?'_ the driver heard his employer and step brother asking.

"Should be gray, but it is not. There was a movie I liked… Indian." Diego had no idea if someone heard their conversation, but it never hurt to be cautious.

 _'I know,'_ the Dragon confirmed it.

"Hey, brother…? If I don't get to ask later… My blood father was your old man, right? Is that why mom said he died shortly after I was born?" The driver figured that if he was going to die, he should take the chance and ask what he never dared. The question had been burning inside his childish mind for years.

 _'…Yes. I killed your father, then made a deal with your mother. I paid her for the five years you two were together.'_ The Dragon's voice was bitter, though Diego couldn't have been happier.

"Then, we're brothers! Tell Mary next time you're in Rome." The driver hung up. He was speeding out of the city and towards the nearest bridge. All this time, he was smiling sweetly. The man was pleased.

First, because he kept his promise to Misa. They went out, ate, talked for a little bit, and then he was about to take her back home. That didn't happen though, as he noticed someone following him. He told Misa to be careful and let her go on her way – they were close anyway, her flat just around the corner.

Then, he called the Dragon and told him where his little girl was. That made him her uncle… Diego smiled even wider. He always had a family, even if he wasn't sure of it at times.

But perhaps more important, he found out about his brother. Even if they may not have the same blood, to him, the Dragon was the best big brother he could have asked for. Looking back into the rear view mirror, he saw the two cars still on his tracks.

"Mary, save my damned soul! Let me see Rome one more time!" he said proudly, blinking away the fog in his eyes. It seemed his foot had frozen on the pedal, as the car went faster and faster by the second. He was on a bridge in no time, keeping the same happy smile on his face, Diego closed his eyes and turned to the right.

The Dragon sped down the street, taking turns and ignoring every rule. He had to make it to the White Elephant in time. At one point, he was about to hit someone crossing the street. "Damned brats, looking at their phones!" he quickly cursed all young people who had ever looked at a screen while crossing the street.

Shin however had no phone to look at. "Look where you're going!" he yelled after the black car that passed him by so closely, Shin had felt the car's right side mirror stroke his back. With a few mumbled observations about the rich not giving a damn about the poor, he dragged his feet to the bus station.

His bus should be there in half an hour. The teenager could barely stay awake anymore, but the thought of his brothers waiting for him was enough to motivate him. He entered a store he knew was open until ten and he began mentally adding up everything he needed to buy. Shin tried to stay away from the money won during lunch, so he could save those for anything else. Once again, he had to limit his choices to food only – the cheaper, the better.

At the tea house, Caterina was standing up and so was Light. They had already paid and she had turned down his offer of watching a film at his house. They both shared a very strange feeling of uneasiness though – one that they didn't dare believe. As soon as Caterina took her jacket, someone walked out of the kitchen holding a shotgun.

"Down!" Light whispered, dragging Caterina down with him and trying to fit her under the table. People around them were screaming in panic and pain. The boy was using the four massive chairs at their table as a tent to secure two sides of the table.

Caterina was silent, though her eyes were shining with horror as if she was a rabbit surprised to see a car approaching through the darkness. Her frown showed confusion – she clearly had no idea why someone was shooting everyone randomly.

The Dragon left the car as close as possible, jumping out and running as fast as he could towards the White Elephant tea house. He could see people stumbling out the tight entrance, falling down the stairs with wounds. The man's heart began to ache again as he saw the red stains on everyone around him. He looked at every girl that passed, but none was his little girl.

Someone was grinning at both teenagers, looking under the table where they managed to take shelter from the bullets. "There you are…!" the man said in victory, holding the shotgun towards Light. "Sorry, lover boy. The boss wants her."

Just then, the sound of something shattering caught the attention of the aggressor, enough for Caterina to point his shotgun up, away from both of them. "Like hell he does!"

Light didn't miss the opportunity and turned the table on him, trying but not really hitting the aggressor. Lucky for them, Caterina's father was there, holding one gun at the head of the one threatening the teenagers and another gun towards the bar – just in case someone else would appear with the intention to kill them all.

The girl backed away in shock, closing her eyes shut and turning her head. She had seen more than enough scenes like that to not know how a person looked with their brains scattered and a bullet in their skull. Light was the first to stand and as soon as he did, he helped her up as well. The boy had never witnessed an execution before, but he wasn't curious at all.

"Can you walk? Are you alright?" he asked her, and she nodded her head.

"I'm fine…" Caterina mumbled.

"Good," her father nodded. Kicking the shotgun from his prisoner's vicinity, the Dragon began hitting his hostage's head against the already bloody floor. "You will tell me who you work for, or I will crush your skull like a nut!" the man growled.

There were some still alive and conscious, but too badly wounded to have made it outside. Light knew where this was most probably going and it was not how he had planned it. The Dragon behind bars would leave Caterina much too vulnerable while Light, with his new 'job', would not have enough time for her.

"With all my respect and as a volunteer for the police, sir, I ask you to stop. You have a unarmed man – this no longer counts as self-defense." On one hand, the Dragon stopped trying to crush his hostage's head against the floor. On the other hand, he was now punching his teeth out of his prisoner's mouth.

"Who do you work for?!" the Dragon asked the aggressor once again, only earning himself a bloody grin.

Diego was also grinning, watching the water coming closer. He was praying to his angels and saints, begging his Catholic God to help him survive. The car was flying off the bridge and only seconds later, water was filling the car. Diego reached out to undo his seat belt.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _As usual, chapter proofread by **Eat4Fun** , my all-time favorite beta who doesn't seem tired of me yet, haha. _

_It's been a while, huh? Well, here's an update. It will be exam season for me all month, so expect the next chapter to take some time before it's finally out. If you didn't get Diego's references, he's talking about the White Elephant - in this story it's a tea house, but it's also a pretty old Indian movie about a little boy who befriends a magical elephant that happens to be white. It's cute, very fairy-tale-like. The second reference was religious. Since they're Italian people, it would be best fit for them to be Catholic, and since Diego is about to jump off a bridge, it seemed normal for him to think about Rome and then the Saint Mary ref just kind of... came along._

 _About the shooting - the boss who hired someone to bring him Caterina will make an appearance next chapter. And since there was another bad guy that received some tears and aww's, he's kind of haunting the Dragon from his grave now. Don't get me wrong, he's dead-dead (not Supernatural-dead, but really dead), but turns out someone wants him avenged._

 _Oh, I almost forgot! You know who is coming close to meeting his creator, so... We're going to try this one more time. Do you want me to save Diego? Or do you want him gone? Answer in the reviews, or message me instead, but please let me know._


	27. XXVI - Green

_XXVI – Green_

* * *

Misa spent the rest of the evening singing along to her favorite artists and bands, dancing around the house and convincing herself to skip dinner again. Hungry was part of the ordinary for her just so she could afford half of a piece of cake every now and then when she would go out with someone. For some reason, the blonde couldn't stop thinking about Diego. The Italian was back after… how long? A year? To her, it seemed longer than that, but if he said it was a year, then he was probably right.

She thought about Anastasia, too… The woman was beautiful, so elegant in her white dresses and floral prints, and so, so thin. Considering she was a mother, Misa admired her for how good she looked. Many women lost their perfect shapes after pregnancy.

But it had been so long since the woman's disappearance, nobody seemed to remember her anymore. Misa sat in bed, watching interviews of famous people – designers, directors, managers, photographers – the heaviest names in the glamorous industries. Those were the people she always wanted to work with. She wanted to act and sing for them, to wear their creations, to advertise for their new collections. Sighing, she noticed none said anything about Anastasia's passing.

To Misa, it was painful and horrible. Anastasia had been big – she worked with Chanel, after all. Every aspiring designer dreamed of that, right? It was the crown; the highest honor they could receive. But now, about a year after her disappearance, Karl barely mentioned something about the flowery watches eventually becoming _'too mainstream'_. Misa looked at hers, a pastel goth designed by Anastasia especially for her. The girl laid on her back, her head hanging off the bed. "It's not fair…" she whined.

At the same time, a really bad feeling seemed to enfold her like the sea waves. She thought about that last photo shoot with Anastasia, the one by the beach. Somehow, everything she remembered seemed to be covered in fog – everything except for the body. One of the other models saw something and before she knew it, everyone freaked out. She remembered the buzz in the media – 'unidentified body between rocks on the beach, discovered by model'. In her opinion, the dead should be remembered, not constantly debated in the media. It was a shame that unfortunate person had become a debate topic for about a month.

Tonight, yet another few deaths were discussed in a last minute report on the news. Something about a shooting at a tea house… Too bad. Misa changed the channel, trying to find a movie worth watching. She was in the mood for some drama, maybe a love triangle with a hint of darkness. She thought about a vampire movie, or maybe something involving a psychopath. Dying in love was the sweetest kind of death in her eyes. _'Find what you love and let it kill you. Let it drain you of your all. Let it cling onto your back and weight you down into eventual nothingness. Let it kill you and devour your remains. For all things will kill you, both slowly and fast, but it's much better to be killed by a lover.'_

She didn't read much from Bukowski, but she knew that quote by heart. At one point she wanted to tattoo it on her back, or maybe on her ribs. There was something so tragically beautiful in it, her heart seemed to tear up every time she read it aloud. And the reason why her soul trembled with both excitement and anxiety was at least bizarre, if not downright irrational. Misa felt loved not as much here on earth, but somewhere above. She often joked about it to herself… Maybe Death loved her. Or Hades, or Lucifer, or one of their unimportant and bullied minions who had long forgotten their freer days.

Tonight though, she was enraged with her dark lover from another dimension. If he was showing his love for her though killing everyone she cared for, she no longer wanted that. Misa was at war with both God and the Devil. She blamed the first for being inexistent and wanted to yell at the other for taking away her parents, and then Anastasia, and now… The blonde was too afraid to even think it. What was that bad feeling, turning her inside out, making her think of Diego every single moment?

In a dark office with dark green wallpaper and some thin, golden lines, someone was smoking a cheap cigar, trying to pretend he was enjoying it. The man had lost his left leg and a few ribs in a horrible accident. A year later, he was disgusted by his burned skin so much, he refused to let anyone see it. He kept no mirrors in his home, a flat arranged underground with three possible ways of access. His employees only knew about one though – he had become much more cautious after the events that left him without a leg.

He had also lost his hair. Most of his body was still covered in very sensitive scar tissue, recovering much slower than he would have liked. Even so, for one occasion only, he decided to show himself. It was a woman – unarmed and completely defenseless, of course. He made sure of that.

She was British, so the man didn't expect much from her appearance. She wasn't there to entertain him that way, so he could easily overlook that aspect. On the radio there was a girl whispering and whining her life story in Spanish. The man had no idea of what she was singing, but he liked the song for the way that girl sounded numb, for the way her voice became a little hoarse along the guitar playing and the soft sound of some exotic drums. She sounded like she was about to cry through the speakers. The man found that relaxing, it soothed his anger and bitterness.

The door opened and a woman entered. He could feel her much too strong perfume filling the room, mixing with his own scent and the smoke from his cigar. She smelled of tea and jasmine, of lemon and something a little sweet. Breathing out a cloud of smoke and sighing, he turned on his chair and looked at her with cold, dead eyes. "Bianca, I suppose…?"

Obviously surprised, the woman swallowed her saliva heavily. The man saw it from across the room. She was certainly not prepared to see someone in his state, though she was trying her best to get over this aspect. "Yes…" she answered.

The man nodded as if to say _'I see'_ , closed his eyes and sucked the smoke from his cigar. He looked at Bianca carefully, watching her from her platinum blonde hair to her black Oxfords. She was much too flat for his taste, her shoulders a little too wide, her ankles too thick. She was in some black dress pants and a loose white shirt, covering her body way more than the man was used to see women. She was obviously there for business.

"Well…?" he asked, gesturing with his right hand towards the couch. "Talk. Do something. I suppose you're not a statue." He was tired of hypocritical acts of shyness and shock.

The woman stepped forward, took his cigar from his mouth and pressed it on the ashtray. "You want me to say something? Fine. I don't smoke."

The man heard her accent, though it wasn't as thick as he expected. Smirking, his face became even more horrible, the scar tissue wrinkling strangely on his left cheek and neck. "Alright then, lemon pie. Let's get to the serious stuff. Why have you insisted on finding me?"

Bianca stood with both her hands on the edge of the man's desk. She looked at him with cold, green eyes. "I believe we may have the same enemy. Can I ask what happened to your face?"

The man sighed, playing with his scarred left hand. He had been smoking for so long, he still sometimes took his hand towards his mouth even without any cigar or cigarette between his fingers. It had become something like a reflex. "You certainly remember that day the whole world burned. I walked out of Hell." It was a way of saying – the shortest version of the story. "So…? My answer," he demanded.

"Revenge. My uncle burned, I am certain we had been scarred by the same man. I have done my research for a year," she answered after a moment.

"…If you expect help, don't. When I kill this man, consider it your revenge as well." The man sounded indifferent, his hand playing with another cigar.

Enraged, Bianca turned her back on him and paced the room. She walked to the door, but turned back once she realized she had no chance on her own. "Listen to me, and listen well. I am not here to beg for your attention."

"I could tell," he interrupted her.

"I want to make sure this man dies, that he will suffer. I want him to beg for his death, that's what I want. He compromised me and he compromised you. We have something in common. I want to work with you-"

Chuckling, he interrupted her again. "You? To work with me? Perhaps _for_ me, you mean… Even so, you're far from sparking any interest in me and I doubt you have anything else to offer."

"I may not have the money, but-"

"Money, Queen Liz – money is everything. Money makes it happen, money is the power, money is the truest god this world has ever known. You don't have the money? There's no but after that. You have nothing."

On the verge of angry, bitter tears, Bianca threw herself on the couch. "Alright. I have nothing. Happy now?!"

"No, but it is a start…" he said. The man looked at her for a long moment.

"Take a picture, it lasts longer," she mumbled after a second.

"You're unattractive, I don't need pictures of you," he stated the fact once again. "I was just thinking…"

"Oh, so you can do that. What a surprise. Isn't money going to think, too?"

With a smirk, the man decided to let it slide. "You may not be as useless to me as I first thought. You can pass unnoticed through a crowd, right? You know, in a public place…"

Bianca nodded. She was curious how they could bring the Dragon down.

"Or… a hospital?" Once again, she answered him with a nod.

"What do you want me to do?"

"A few hours ago, my men chased one of his loyal servants. I have my reasons when I say the Dragon cares about this one employee. They saw him jumping off a bridge with his car and I suppose he will be taken to the regional emergency hospital. I want you to pose as that man's relative and bring him to me." He held his hands together, staring right ahead and planning his next move. The other half of his plan didn't work, but perhaps this woman could help him get the driver.

The woman nodded. "And if they don't believe me?"

"It's your job to make sure they do," the man warned her. "You either do it, or not. I will no longer tolerate failure."

The man was well aware he only had one chance to make it work. It was either success, or a complete disaster, especially since his mobility had been affected the previous time. He feared that this time, if he gave the Dragon another chance, he will no longer be able to get out alive. The man didn't want to consider that scenario, though he had his emergency escape plan ready this time. He will no longer allow the Dragon to surprise him and catch him off guard.

This time, there was even a chance that the Dragon will be the one caught by surprise. He was so worried about his daughter, he forgot to check if his driver was alive or if he had been found by anyone. After giving a declaration to the Police the way his lawyer advised him and betting on self-defense, he warned the Chief about the possible threat.

"If my daughter was the target, I will advise you from father to father to try and keep your son as safe as possible. I believe by now, it has become obvious the teenagers are spending most of their free time together, whether or not we agree to this," he addressed the man before him, who was frowning and staring blankly ahead, trying to make sense of what had just happened.

"Let me ask you once more, sir. Why exactly do you believe your daughter to be a possible target?" G. Amadeo had been a name many in the Japanese Police remembered after the mysterious disappearance of files related to the yacht murder case. He had been suspected of having cold-bloodedly slaughtered his wife and butler, which also drew everyone's attention on the man's impressive fortune. There were many who said he had no way to explain his constantly flourishing business or where does he get the money to invest in everything, but whenever the investigation seemed to be close to some evidence, the files would suddenly vanish.

The Dragon knew very well of the Chief's suspicions. "First, because of my status. I have rivals and enemies who would kidnap and blackmail for money." He didn't say it, but the psychological blow would be their most desired result. Who were they? For once, the Dragon wasn't sure. He suspected Ross, with who he had been making some very profitable exchanges lately, but it would be quite difficult for him to spy on his daughter from across the Pacific. "Second, because of what I heard the attacker say. Your son and my daughter heard him, as well as some other victims."

The Chief couldn't stand to look this man in the eye. There may be no solid evidences, but his instinct and experience were enough to accuse the one before him of corruption, blackmail, and even murder. "…Alright, then we can offer you protection as witnesses in this case, with at least two policemen guarding your residence and surveillance of the area." Though as expected, the Dragon refused.

"I appreciate it, but I assure you, Chief – I have everything handled. I am simply informing you of my personal supposition. I can tell from experience your son could be seen as a target as well because of his close friendship with my daughter." Starting to lose his temper, the Dragon couldn't wait to leave the Police section and join his precious Caterina.

"Will you sign that you refused protection?"

Already annoyed with how superficially the Dragon thought the other was treating a very real and very dangerous situation, he took out a fountain pen and signed. Of course, he skimmed the paper before doing so.

It wasn't often when the man doubted Light's judgment, but he could not completely ignore the suspicions of the Dragon. In truth, he feared the situation was bad for his son as well, though he wouldn't believe it. It was something too horrible for a father to suspect his son might end up in the middle of a clash between powerful, corrupted men with no morals or sense of the law. In the happiest scenario Light could end up hurt or in the hospital. In the worst… Clenching his fist, the father was determined to use his authority as the man of the family. His son had to distance himself from that girl, pretty as she was, before it would be too late.

All this time, the teenagers were waiting, making conversation for the sake of passing time. Caterina was still scared of everything that happened, even if she tried to deny it. While the Dragon was discussing with his father, Light bought her some hot chocolate from the coffee automaton at the entrance.

"Are you alright? You're not hurt, right?" he asked in a low voice. In truth, they were both tired.

"…I guess," she mumbled, taking the hot plastic cup with her both hands. For a moment, her fingers touched his. Her hands were frozen, yet again.

"Are you cold?" Light asked. It may not be a very bright, conversation-worthy topic, but at the time it seemed any topic will do as long as it offered them a distraction.

She shook her head. Attempting to take a sip, Light saw her frowning quickly and pulling the cup away from her lips. It was unusual for her to be so careless…

"You're not like that. What's on your mind?" he asked.

"…Nothing, just…" Sighing, she shook her head. "No, it's nothing. Makes no sense, anyway," the girl mumbled.

"No," he insisted, "It must matter. Come on, talk about it. You'll feel better after that, I promise," he attempted to convince her and smiled weakly.

"I just feel like I'm being hunted, you know? First it was my mother. Now that they found out about me, they try to get to him through me. Through me and everyone else around me…" she sighed. "This will end up badly."

Light began to recognize her again. The girl was more alike to the one he met when she returned to Japan. "Is it about the one you said could have gotten away?"

Caterina glanced behind them, making sure nobody was listening to their conversation. "I could bet. He must hate us now, if he even survived… Or maybe he's long gone, if you get me, but he's got someone trying to avenge him."

Light frowned. "Is he home tomorrow…?" he asked, glancing quickly towards the office where their fathers were discussing.

"No, I doubt it. He still has business to discuss with an associate's son. He will be around, but not in the apartment. Why…?"

"We need somewhere safe to talk. I figured if he's not there, we could have this talk quietly."

Caterina nodded. "We'll have time tomorrow," she agreed.

The Dragon was done with the declarations a few minutes later. It was already past midnight and everyone was tired. It wasn't everyday a casual date ended with a shooting, though the darker version of Light didn't mind it. The event could open a door the Dragon had been trying to close for a while.

The man was aware he owed Light for the simple fact he tried to shelter his daughter and comfort her when he himself could not. He also knew Light will try to take advantage of it. Even so, he had so much on his mind, the man decided he will deal with this problem later. For now, he had to drive to his apartment, make sure they had the most trustworthy guards keeping them safe, that nobody knew their true identities at the reception and that he will get enough rest to be able to negotiate with Reiji tomorrow morning. His companies were hanging by a thread because of flagrant incompetence and corruption.

What the man didn't know was how some ghosts were coming back to haunt not him, but his daughter. That night, Shin received a very tempting offer while waiting for the bus that was to take him home. A tall, slender guy looking perhaps a few years older and hiding most of his face under a hood approached him.

"Hey, man, got a smoke?"

Shin shook his head. "No, sorry."

"Y'er Shin, right?" the stranger continued. "I got a message for ya."

This caught the student's attention. "From who?" But instead of an answer, the stranger showed him a stack of American dollars. Shin's eyes widened in shock. He had never seen so many dollars stacked in front of him. His skin began to crawl in temptation, even if he knew it was not the right thing to do.

"Someone wants a girl y'er talkin' to." Putting the money back under his shirt, the stranger took out an amateur picture of Shin and Caterina talking in class. "Bring 'er to a certain bar and that's all. Y'er getting' paid an' outta there."

Shin took a step back. "What will happen to her…?"

"Nothin', man, I swear! Someone just wants to talk to 'er, but daddy doesn't like 'im. So, y'er in, or nah?"

Shin looked where the stranger kept the money. That was a hell of a lot! Way more than he had ever seen… And he desperately needed the money, but… He couldn't just take Caterina to some bar and leave her there, right? She could get raped and killed, and then he'd be an accomplice. It wasn't right to do that, but then… He could use the money to lift himself and his brothers from their poverty. With sweaty palms and a cold chill down his spine, he swallowed his saliva and tried to look away. But God, so much money! More than he had ever seen…! Who would pay so much to have Caterina delivered like some package? His skin was crawling with blame and temptation.

"I-I-I c-can't! I'm sorry, I don't know you, we never talked!" Panicked and with his heart beating much faster than he would have liked, Shin took the bus home. The moral implications were slowly killing him. What would happen if he did accept the offer? On the other hand, there was the law. If anything happened to Caterina, which certainly would, he was an accomplice. Or even worse! Someone who was offering a stack of American dollars for this sure could offer the same to the police, or a judge, or whoever else could fabricate some evidences to get him in jail.

Even so, the money would still be there for his brothers to use… Even if he does end up in jail, he could leave the money to his brothers. But they were six years old, for God's sake! How could two children take care of themselves, even with the money?! No, this wasn't an option. They were too small to make it on their own.

What should he do…? Shin couldn't stop thinking about that image. A stack of American dollars, so thick the guy could barely fit it in his hand. How much was that? Hundreds? Thousands? He couldn't even imagine how it must feel to hold such a sum of money, cash, right there in his hand.

Then, there was Caterina… Perhaps if he told her and got to talk to her father, he would pay him for that information. It must be important, but… what bar was that guy talking about? If he said any name or address, Shin hadn't been paying attention. But why would anyone want Caterina so badly? Was it something personal, or someone becoming obsessed with her beauty? In his mind, both made sense. Everybody knew the rich had enemies, while the girl was pretty and could easily catch the eye of someone with bad intentions.

For the rest of the night, Shin couldn't sleep. His brothers ate and went to sleep, he checked the homework he gave them the day before and left them some new exercises for tomorrow. It was important they both knew how to read by the time they went to school and could write quite well. It would give them a good start, something Shin didn't have…

He sat on the floor at the round table they found a few years ago and decided to keep as their own. Holding his head in one hand, Shin began to think about the possible reasons, about the implications and possible rewards he could ask from Caterina's father. Still, he lacked consistent information. He couldn't just go there and tell them someone asked him to bring the girl to some bar. There had to be over a hundred in the area. It would be a shot in the dark…

But Shin wasn't the only one depraved of any sleep that night. Just as he was laying in his bed, the Dragon heard his phone calling. Judging by the time, it must have been an emergency, so he picked it up. Not yet fully awake, the man waited for the other to speak. He waited for a few long moments, hearing nothing but the constant breathing of someone and some low music being played in the background.

After listening closely for a while, his eyes widened in horror, quickly turning into rage. It was religious music, usually played at funerals. He knew it too well, he always listened to the music when he attended a funeral. To him, it was wonderful how it seemed to comfort the cries of everyone around, heard or unheard. Now though, it was a threat – an act of defiance, so obvious it was humiliating.

Growling loudly, the man turned off his phone and smashed it against the wall. The device left a few cracks on the wall, falling to the floor in pieces.

When Caterina heard the noise, she woke up and ran into her father's room. She entered hesitantly, her heart skipping a beat or two. She saw him at the edge of the bed, holding his head with his hands and trembling with fury. "…Padre?"

At first, he didn't answer. When Caterina approached him, he sighed. "Someone wants you alive and me, dead…"

The girl sat beside him and leaned over his hunched back, rubbing his shoulders and arms with her hands. "I know. I've been wondering when will they threaten you, too."

It didn't come as a surprise. During the past year, he kept Caterina closely by his side. He showed her everything he had been protecting her from. The girl began to understand the ways of the people in his world, the ghosts the police could only dream of catching, the powerful and wicked, rotten to the core and in love with blood and money.

"I am tired, my love… I am aging," he mumbled in a low voice. "They are all younger than me, I must be the last of my generation," he continued. The man saw the shadow of his girl shaking her head. He looked at their pitch black shadows in the dimly lit room, spreading out on the floor and on the wall before them.

"You're not that old yet. You still have power, authority. Everything you own…"

"Can't buy me youth," he concluded after a short moment of silence. To this, she only sighed. Her father was right, all the money in the world couldn't bring him his years of power back. He may be in good health, but that was not going to be enough for long. "Caterina, the light of my eyes… I want you to meet someone."

His words burned in her mind like red coals. She knew why he wanted her to meet someone and she could bet it would be a man, older than her but still relatively young, probably eyeing her with lustful eyes and a gross grin on his face. Caterina feared this moment would come, but she had convinced herself her father won't do this to her.

Slowly, the girl stood up and walked to the door, not even turning to look at the Dragon. "Don't you dare… Don't you dare force me into this!" she said between heavy breaths, trying hard to keep her self-control. When she walked out, Caterina slammed the door and the Dragon could hear her running to her room.

Sighing, the man ran one hand through his hair. This was turning into his worst nightmare. He had no one beside him, his daughter was a target, his enemies were spinning a web around him and he could no longer deny the burden of his age.

Turning on his laptop, the man looked through the surveillance cameras. Everything there was silent, only the heavy rain was pouring down. His guards were still there, watching out for anything that seemed suspicious. Some were smoking, some were talking. They certainly didn't expect the Dragon to watch if they were on duty at that hour. Two of them were playing cards.

The Dragon left the laptop on and laid in bed. He had to find a way of solving all of these problems before others will arise.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _I just found out this morning that my fabulous beta reader Eat4Fun changed their username, so from now on we're going to get used to our favorite **AbandonedSock**. That being said, let's move on to the references._

 _Misa is talking about Karl Lagerfeld (and at times, Caterina too) - for anyone who doesn't know his name, Google it. I am certain you know the guy, you've seen him before._

 _There is a song by Kerli called 'Death is in love with me' and it kind of reminds me of Misa and Jealous. I'm not saying Jealous kills anyone, just that she suspects her supernatural lover getting a little possessive. If there's any character in Death Note who would have some romantic dark fantasies about vampires, gods, demons and what not, that's Misa._

 _Bianca's nicknames are either a reference to her perfume (lemon pie) or to her origins and accent. By Queen Liz the man with scars on him mocked Queen Elizabeth II of England, and UK, and every other territory still depending on the crown. That was just a joke, hope I didn't offend too many Brits - but seriously, the least they could have done was getting their arse off some obviously, clearly, visibly Spanish territory. Okay! Rant over, movin' on!_

 _I know for some countries (India, for example) arranged marriages are normal. In Europe though, they are frown upon and usually associated with either the noble families in the past, or gypsies. Considering the Dragon and Caterina are European, I figured she would be against the idea. Not that Light would have anything to do with her reaction..._

 _Now about our stingy little problem (you will see what I mean) - anyone else besides **Jupiter's Bull** who thinks Diego should die? Or do you want to keep him alive? You know, Bianca has no experience, she hasn't killed anyone, she could easily make some mistakes... Just saying that it's not too late and the question is still valid. As for her boss, I'll let you guess. :D_

 _And just because it happened before - if you get confused or need a reference sheet or character list or anything like that, please ask for it. If not, at the end of the story (when all is done and you will see who survives and if Kira rules the world and all that) I can make a profile of every OC or re-interpreted character, kind of like the 13: How to Read, but with the differences from canon. I just can't wait to bring L and Ryuk on the scene~_


	28. XXVII - White

_XXVII – White_

* * *

Early morning on the first day of winter, at the reception of the largest hospital in the area, a woman walked with a worried look on her face. In truth, her expression was natural – it would be her first mission of this kind. The woman looked ordinary, not drawing anyone's attention. She had her platinum blonde hair in a careless ponytail with some shorter strands framing her square face. Her eyes were small and green, her nose a little too big to be considered elegant. Her lips were thin and bare, bitten a couple of times just enough for them to swollen slightly and give her a pout. The white of her eyes was covered in thin red lines, not because of crying but because of the late night meeting with her newest associate.

"Hello, excuse me, could you please help me?" she addressed one of the three women at the reception. "Is there… Is there any chance you have someone unidentified in this hospital? My fiancé had a car accident last night. He fell off the bridge just outside town. Oh, please! I'm desperate! I've been searching for him in every hospital. I don't even know if he's alive…"

"Calm down, miss, please. I am going through the database. Please wait…"

With her heart trembling in anxiety and joy, Bianca waited to hear the room in which she would find her target. It seemed her act had been believable so far. Only one problem…

"Miss? It seems the man had some papers with him. Can you give me his name and birth date?"

Turning pale all of a sudden, the woman was left without an answer. She had been told her target would be unidentified…

"Danny Stanford," she spat out the first name that came to her mind, "July 23rd. Is he here?"

"I apologize…" the one at the reception shook her head.

Bianca already knew the answer, though this was only a distraction meant to get her out of the hospital. She needed to know that man's name and birthday… Cursing the Snake for not giving her enough information, she walked out and immediately called him.

 _'Already done?'_ he answered.

"Like hell I am! You never mentioned I needed to know his name and birthday! They won't tell me the room. And now my disguise is spoiled!"

 _'Calm down and return to me. We are going to fix this.'_

Around the same time, the Dragon was waiting for Namikawa Reiji to join him for breakfast with his final answer. Although tired, he still hoped to look like his usual self – strong, calm, and perfectly in control of any situation. He had twice as many guards scattered through the area, most of them in the restaurant of the hotel and at the entrance, disguised as civilians.

The waiter led his possible associate to the table and took their order. The Dragon had bought this waiter's loyalty, he was his personal waiter whenever he entered the restaurant. The man agreed immediately – who wouldn't? The Dragon gave him three unofficial salaries a month and being someone's personal servant meant he didn't have to run between six to ten tables of moody, arrogant clients. It also meant that at the end of the month, the lucky waiter would be paid by both the hotel and the Dragon.

"Good morning, sir," his younger possible associate greeted him, to which the Dragon responded with a nod.

"Good morning. I hope the room service was to your liking?"

"Impeccable, as expected," the younger responded. "I have made my decision. Of course, I had discussed this with my father."

The Dragon waited patiently for the other to continue. It seemed none of them appreciated useless small talk. He was pleased to see the other cutting to the point so soon.

"I will need a complete analysis of the current situation and of every company's progress over the past two years. I also wish to see reports from every company's sales responsible, who I suppose will be my subordinates…" Reiji Jr. stopped for a moment, waiting for the approval of his superior.

"You will have everything you've asked so far by the end of the following week. Anything else?" At last, the Dragon had some reason to feel calm.

"I will wish to see the hierarchy in the corporation. At a first glance, it seems there are incapable people in leading positions, making unprofitable decisions. I believe if I will be allowed to replace those under-qualified, preferably with others from the corporation who are already familiar with the environment, we shall see results as soon as the end of the trimester."

The Dragon noted how calm Namikawa was, already demanding respect and authority. He was more than pleased to hear his newest asset already planning his first moves. Reiji promised success and nothing less, though the Dragon was a little skeptical about his ambition. "The end of the trimester is in one month…" he warned him.

"Yes. I am aware of that. However, if it will take about one week for me to receive these reports, I will need some time to look over them, draw my conclusions and make the changes I plan. This means the useless will be replaced immediately after the western New Year, which is also the beginning of my first trimester working in the corporation."

The Dragon relaxed, confirming his high expectations from the future vice-president of sales. "Of course. You said you have spoken to your father. Can I know his response?"

After a moment, Namikawa put on a small smile, enough to show he was growing more comfortable with the other's presence and felt more at ease now that the important matters had been clarified. "He agreed. May I ask why do you seem so concerned over my father's response? I also know you have not discussed the details of this offer prior to my departure from the United States."

With their food being brought to the table, the Dragon decided he should allow him the question. He needed competent, reliable and loyal subordinates, so trust was essential. He could not afford to count on money alone in situations of this sort.

"As you know, I have been collaborating very well with your father. I also came to know him through the years, enough to guess he will want you to take over the United States division of the corporation. I could not know for sure if he will allow you to occupy a high position in the Asian division. We both knew for years that you would have the potential to surpass your father – and perhaps, not only him…"

Namikawa could agree with everything he heard to that point. His father always had high expectations from him and encouraged him to be the very best in everything he did. What he couldn't be certain of was whether the Dragon wanted him to take over the entire global corporation, or just the Asian division. The later would have meant for him to equal his father, but the first option sounded much more tempting.

"Naturally, your father could turn down my offer in order to keep you as his right hand man, while it was in my better interest to have you here, in the Asian division. You see, thanks to your father and his management, the United States division is currently the most stable of all, raising profits every year. It would be easy to work under him – perhaps too easy for someone with your potential," the Dragon continued, "while the Asian division is slowly collapsing. This, Namikawa Reiji, is the best opportunity for you to prove your abilities. If your ambitious plans prove successful, I can assure you a very bright future ahead of you, at least from a professional perspective."

The younger thought about it for a moment. Indeed, the offer was extremely tempting. He had the opportunity to rebuild the Asian division if he could prove his worth in the Sales department. Sales and Finances were possibly the two most important departments, responsible for a company or a corporation's profits.

"I can see what opportunities you are offering me, sir, and I accept the challenge. After I will have seen the analysis and reports I have requested, I can estimate the progress you can expect by the end of March. From what information my father had given me, the Asian division has had no profit over the past year, after a decline of two years. I cannot promise any significant profit for my first year in this division, and I believe it is self understood."

The Dragon nodded. "Very well. For now, the goal of you and the new team with which you will be working is to minimize the spending. In other words, this division will go into a survival mode, where we will be paying the debts of this year."

"This is exactly what I have in mind. Once the debts are paid, we can think of new investments." After a moment, Reiji thought he should ask something he had been discussing with his father. "Please allow me to ask, sir… During the year prior to this, have you supported this division personally?"

Although he had not expected that question so soon, the Dragon answered it anyway. "I have. The reason why I have decided to come here myself was to supervise the Asian division. I have reasons to suspect many of the hierarchy had been corrupted by someone, which I suspect is the cause of its pitiful state."

"Is this suspicion linked to the apparently inexplicable fires and explosions all over Japan during the same time period?" Namikawa asked.

No matter how much the Dragon wanted to count on trust though, he could not yet trust Reiji's son with this kind of information. There was a select group of very few of his associates who knew about his less orthodox ways, but he could not yet include Reiji the younger in this category. "Theories are nothing without any evidences. Do you happen to know anything, or have you simply drawn your own, personal conclusions?"

The younger understood quickly. "My personal suppositions, Sir. I apologize if I sounded threatening. My father assured me of your strict moral values and you can be certain, sir, I naturally agree to them. As for your ways, I stand indifferent. We shall do whatever is necessary to assure the success of the corporation."

The last phrase surprised the Dragon the most. It all seemed to be going well – a premiere in the past year. "Very well, then I suppose you will not have any moments of hesitation when reforming the Sales department."

"For now," Reiji decided to push his luck a little further.

"For now," the Dragon agreed. He knew what the other was trying to ask, but avoided making any promises. The man had always rewarded performance and loyalty, and Namikawa had most likely heard of his habits. To both of them, it sounded like the beginning of a long and very profitable partnership.

In the mean time, Caterina was waiting for Light. Just before her father walked out of Yagami's office last night, they set the time – 9:30 the next morning. After the shooting, both of them had grown a little paranoid about being followed, overheard, and so on. Talking on the phone was no longer a safe bet and it should be seen as an emergency option only.

The girl waited in the living room, going to the kitchen and coming back again. She was not hungry – at least, not hungry enough to allow herself to eat. Rather, she felt nervous, anxious, maybe even a little scared. When she heard someone at the door, she jumped.

Light had been surprised to see so many guards in the area. They were as far as two or three streets away, openly wearing the uniforms of a private security company. He knew there had to be a few others dressed as civilians while secretly reporting anything suspicious. The Voice was impressed – if not even a little jealous.

When he entered the hotel, he was required to tell his name and one of the guards compared him to what Light assumed to be a profile on a mobile device. He had been inspected for weapons or guns before he was finally allowed to enter. Even on the floor rented entirely by her father, Caterina was guarded by two armed guards looking at least twice as big as him.

Eventually, Light knocked at the door. Her father may already know he was there, but Light hoped the incidents from last night could make the man feel grateful to him. When the girl opened the door though, he didn't expect to see her like that. She was in a loose tee and shorts, with her hair messy and carelessly thrown over one shoulder.

He looked down for a moment. The girl had no intention of going anywhere else, or that's what he understood from her careless look. It seems they were at the point where she no longer cared much about how he would see her, as long as she was covered.

"What?" Caterina raised an eyebrow at him. "You've never seen me in shorts before?"

Light smirked. "I don't think so."

"Well, stop staring and let's talk." She sighed. Light could tell she felt stressed lately. Perhaps it was why she seemed to prefer staying at home – it must be the safest place in all Japan.

After leaving his shoes, Caterina thought he would pass her by and go into the living room, but instead Light wrapped his arms around her waist loosely. "Sure, let's talk. What got you like this?"

Accepting the closeness, she seemed to relax a little. "Remember I said I felt hunted before…? He got a phone call last night."

Light nodded, waiting for her to continue. "And? Who was it?"

"That's the problem, you see… The SIM card must have been changed immediately after, it can't be tracked down this way. Someone threatened to kill him."

The Voice was paying close attention. So there was somebody else who had thought of killing the Dragon, which could show him how Caterina would react. On the other hand, her being left on her own now would be inconvenient. Light should be at least eighteen in order to take over anything, that is what the law said. He would also have to marry her in order to gain legal rights over the fortune of her father. Besides, he would be an easy target considering he still did not know the Dragon's associates and allies – if he had any.

"But didn't he hear the voice?" Light asked, both sides of him concerned.

"No. He said he only heard someone's breathing and funeral music. It's…" She sighed, turning away and taking a few steps down the hall. "I don't know. My father is in a very tangled situation. I can't handle it on my own, even if I've been by his side for a year – it's not enough… Besides, I think he wants to arrange my marriage."

Her last phrase hit him like a bullet. Her father wanted her to what? To who? And when? She wasn't even seventeen yet… though an arrangement could be made now for the future.

"…I guess that's my problem, huh?" she asked, feeling betrayed by his silence.

Waking up, Light walked in front of her. "No…! Caterina, I just… I wasn't expecting that. Are you sure? I mean, did he say anything certain, or…?"

Crossing her arms over her chest, the girl rolled her eyes. "Right. As if you'd care."

"I mean it! Are you sure that's what he wants?" Light asked again.

"He said he wants me to meet someone, after going on about him aging and so on… It must be about his newest associate. My father knows his father very well, it seems they helped each other a lot. Now Padre brought his guy from the States and I heard him talking on the phone to the driver. Diego called him a _'pretty boy'_. He's one of the youngest and… my father seems to trust him a lot."

That meant even more bad news for Light. Neither side of him wanted that to be true, though… "It would make sense," he mumbled, only making the girl drag her feet to the couch and throw herself on it.

"I would have loved you more if you destroyed my theory…" she mumbled, curling her feet beside her.

Light sighed. "I hate it just as much. I mean, what about me?" he tried with a smile, sitting on the coffee table in front of her.

Caterina held back a smile. "I don't know… This guy is most likely older, rich… Some arrogant bastard who needs company at night and a doll to smile in pictures. That's what my mother was and I despised her for that. She never really had a word in anything but that vacation on the yacht, and then…"

He would have joked about it if she didn't look on the verge of tears. Light thought that must have been the situation with her mother, but the thought Caterina could end up in the same kind of situation disgusted him. She would never agree to that, right?

Taking her hands in his, he tried to warm them up. "You're not like her. Decline and he can't force you, it's not legal."

"Light, how exactly is the law protecting anyone? It's illegal to kill, but there are hundreds if not thousands murdered every day all across the world. But no, just because it's illegal, it can't happen." She looked at him in hope to see anything she could use to get back on her feet because emotionally, she had been knocked down.

Thinking about it, he became thankful he now had the Death Note. It was more effective than passing a law on capital punishment.

"Decline anyway! Try to slow everything down until you turn eighteen. Then, you will have full rights and you can decide for yourself, you won't need anyone to represent you. Until then, I'm sure we can find a way though…"

Nodding, the girl gave his hands a gentle squeeze and leaned in her seat. "I suppose that's all that I can do… I'm worried for him, too."

"Let's take this from the beginning. Is the one who chases you two the same who arranged the… yacht incident?" Light asked, eager to confirm his theories.

"I think so. Vincent worked for this guy, who was an associate of a guy on the west coast of the United States." Caterina needed to think this through with someone and her father was too stressed lately to listen.

"Do you have any names?" Light knew the apartment was safe for any kind of talk, so she shouldn't avoid these. He also hoped to use the internet and find these criminals in some data base. That way, he could help Caterina and keep her father alive for a little longer. Though that wasn't the case. Light soon found out Caterina had no sufficient information.

"Ross. That's all I know of the guy in the States. The one Vincent worked for is known as the Snake, he owned a bar called the Green Snake, or something like that. Padre killed Vincent and hunted down the Snake, but it seems he had survived and has his mind set on killing him and taking me." The girl was curious why Light wanted the names, but she assumed that, with his father being the police chief, Light could give the police a few clues.

"What about last night? Did he send any threats?" he asked. Soon enough, Caterina stood and stepped over his legs. His knees were so close to the couch, she had no other way of getting out and Light didn't move. At least he got a nice feeling of her being that close.

His happiness ran out like water from his hands as soon as she returned. Caterina handed him a picture of the two of them talking at the White Elephant tea house, him holding her hand. It was taken from the bar, from where their attacker came out with a shotgun. On the back, Light read out loud. "' _Sinners.'_ What have we sinned?" he asked her.

Caterina sat on the arm of the couch and let herself fall on her back. "No idea. But if you look at that first S, what does it look like?"

Light saw the top end a little thicker and the lower end thinner. "…Like a snake. Do you think he is behind it?"

"I'm sure of it. And you know what worries me? My father avoids the question when I ask where Diego is. That's not like him…" She turned her head to look at Light.

"What do you think happened to him?" he asked, cautious. The girl's situation was bad, and if he wanted her to be his back-up, he obviously needed her alive.

"…I don't know. I'm afraid of the worst. He was close to us both, our closest employee. Maybe he's being tortured for information, you know? Or maybe he's… dead. I don't want that, I grew up with him, but I… Well, I have to accept reality… He doesn't answer his phone, either."

Light looked at her calmly. He knew she needed that. "No matter the outcome, I'm sure they won't find out anything from him." When she nodded, he continued. "And they wouldn't get anything from me, either." This was the Voice that came up with the idea and Caterina seemed to have fallen for it, frowning in worry.

"I don't want to risk that… You have no reason to get involved in all this mess. It will end badly."

"I know," he began, to which she sat up and looked at him closely, trying to read his expression. "And you are my reason. I can't leave you alone to deal with everything. It would be selfish, heartless. I don't want you to face these problems on your own." His eyes softened, quietly asking her to believe him.

"But I won't be alone…" she mumbled in a weak voice.

"No, I'll be by your side," Light finished her sentence for her, leaning in and kissing her gently. "I'm not leaving you alone." The Voice has been gaining more control in the year when they've been apart and was now acting on its own for longer periods of time. Light was still there, but he was weak and easily talked out of everything by his darker side. To him, knowing he could be safe and close to his auburn-haired girl was enough – as long as the Voice didn't make any grave mistakes, he had nothing against it.

Caterina had no idea of the changes. These were so subtle and her mind so scattered between everything that had to be done, she could only accept the peaceful moment and return the affection.

But it was an illusory moment, it was the calm before the storm. Bianca returned into the Snake's office, frustrated at him for not giving her the information she didn't even know she will need.

"Calm, breathe, have a drink, and sit." The man was tired of drama and angry women.

"I will not calm! What do I do now? They know me, I can't return there." she tried to explain, waiting with one hand on her hip to hear the man's solution.

The man gestured towards the couch with his left, scarred hand. "Will you? Or do you need flowers and champagne for that?"

"Oh, spare me your irony!" the blonde spat back and eventually sat down. "Do you have anything without alcohol?"

"Why? Do you tolerate it as well as the rumor has it Brits do?" the Snake smirked.

"I don't drink. That's all." Bianca became alert when she noticed the man trying to get up. So far, she had no idea how the accident had been that left him with his hand and his face covered in scars.

The man had two crutches beside him. He turned his chair to the side, took the crutches and carefully got up. One of his legs was missing from above the knee, as the blonde noticed. He had his dark brown tailored pants so it fit his shorter leg like a sleeve, just a little bit longer than his actual leg.

"I know, no need to stare… Believe me, I despise it as much as I despise the Dragon for what he did to me." Clearly, he was still angry at the loss and needed more time to accept the way he looked.

"What exactly happened?" the blonde insisted.

The Snake sighed in frustration. "My fucking car exploded! That's what happened!"

After the sudden outburst, Bianca wished she had at least one means of defense against him. The man didn't look very stable, from an emotional point of view. He went to another room which Bianca hasn't seen yet and returned with a small syringe. It seemed to be already filled with something. The needle was covered by a plastic cap, making it safe to handle.

"What's that?" she asked, trying hard to remain calm.

"It's not for you. If I can't question that guy, I want him dead. Tonight, when the shift changes, I want you to find the man and kill him." Approaching her, the Snake passed her the syringe. "Poison."

The woman took it and studied it in the yellowish light of the lamp. It looked completely transparent, though it was obviously different from water. The way light traveled through the liquid reminded her of oil.

"I still have no idea of his room," she reminded him, though on a much calmer tone.

The Snake noticed the change. It was a fake calm – she feared him, that was the reason of her sudden change of attitude. "I will find out by noon."

Bianca nodded. "I've never done this before. What do I do after that? Do I keep this? It will have my finger prints on it."

"I don't care, get rid of it…" but the look of confusion and fear of the woman made him reconsider his answer. "You inject it in a perfusion or something. It needs to get into his blood system, if you do that then it won't leave any sting mark on him."

Bianca nodded. "I thought so, but what's next?"

"From the moment you do that, you have about a minute before his vital signs alert the medical staff. His throat will tighten and he will suffocate quickly. Try to get out of there as soon as possible and do not, under any circumstances – and I mean _any_ – touch the needle. You put back the cap, hide it, then get out."

The Snake went to sit in an armchair. He let his crutches on the side and turned on the TV. Even so, he turned to look at the British woman from time to time.

"Once you're outside, act normal and return here as soon as possible. I will have someone burn that syringe. It's the only way to destroy it completely."

"Are you sure about that?" Bianca asked.

"About what?" the Snake asked back. He said many things, he didn't know which part she considered uncertain.

"That it will be destroyed," she clarified.

"'Course. Even if not entirely, it will be impossible for the police or anyone else to guess what it contained or who used it." In the corner of his eye, he saw Bianca nodding. The man was watching the news. They were going on about another few criminals that recently died of heart attacks. He couldn't care less – none of those were working for him.

"Tell me again, lemon pie…" he began.

"Bianca," she corrected him, but the man ignored her.

"Lemon pie. Why are you doing all this? First, you went out of your way to work for me. Now, it seems you have no experience at all in this kind of business. I don't believe your _'oh, poor me, my uncle died, I want to play Wonder Woman and avenge his death'_ bullshit."

After a long moment of silence, the woman eventually decided to collaborate. She already got herself into the game and the only way out was death, if she was to believe the movies and the general ideas sold by the media.

"Because he ruined me. This Dragon, or whatever his name is, used to pay my uncle for keeping his wife entertained, to take her mind off her situation."

"Yes, I figured," the Snake nodded, waiting for her to continue.

"I depended on the money my uncle sent me. My mother, too. She had only one kidney left and it was failing her. My uncle used to send us money every two months. Lately, I began asking him for more because I wanted to go to college."

"And study what?" the Snake asked while changing channels.

"Medicine. And my uncle helped me for one semester, but after that, he was killed. Shortly after, I dropped out and tried to work, but I had no qualification and the salary…" The woman stopped.

"I know, I know. So what happened? Mommy died and you woke up next morning, all alone in the big world?" the Snake began to mock her. "I heard more than enough of these soap opera stories."

"Then, you know. I needed something to do, so I tracked down my uncle and found out about this Dragon."

"And about me, his latest employer," the Snake finished her sentence. "Correct, Queen Liz?"

Bianca was annoyed, but knew she was in no position of demanding anything. "Correct."

"So basically, Vincent's money paid for your mother's life while I supported your college, or something like that," he concluded.

Sighing, Bianca put the syringe in her purse and leaned in her seat. She crossed her legs. "I suppose. Anyway, you can't ask him now – none of us can."

Laughing, the Snake shook his head. "I suppose you supposed right. Stay with me for lunch, if you aren't too disgusted by how I look."

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Thanks to my favorite beta with a new username, **AbandonedSock,** you now have another update. _

_If you want any references, note that Bianca means white. It's why her hair is platinum blonde and also why she's dressing up in white. Also, notice her using the "That's all" expression that most people will associate with the main white-haired character in the film The Devil Wears Prada. And because it's the first time she gets the spotlight, the chapter is also called White._

 _I know some of you always will love the bad guys more (most of you, I suppose, since Light is kind of the bad guy), so I decided to keep the Snake alive. He had to take some damage... and, well, since we never got to see him kill anyone, I figured his signature kill would be poison._

 _Also, I'm really glad to see you like the way I portrayed Misa. When watching the series, it's easy to see her as a "one dimensional dumb blonde" and get annoyed by her - however, I don't know anyone like that in real life. It's still a bit difficult writing for Misa, though. She makes me glad I chose this story format; I don't think I can write in first person for her._

 _And... it's just a thought, but do you think there's a chance for a bit of... damaged romance in this, too? A bit of Joker and Harley kind of romance? I'm just leaving this here. I don't know a lot about them, just have an idea, but I like the concept of that relationship and I'm wondering if we could slip this somewhere._

 _As for Diego... he definitely got more action that the character that inspired his concept in the first place. By the way, can you guess who inspired Diego's character?_


	29. XXVIII - Needle Point

_XXVIII – Needle Point_

* * *

For the rest of the day, the Dragon avoided his daughter. Instead, he chose to dedicate his time to the Yotsuba corporation and to his newest associated – one of the very few he still trusted. Of course, the first to take advantage of it was Light Yagami and the man's sworn enemy, his former protégé – also known as the Snake.

While Light did not aim to ruin him, just maybe his daughter's hair and part of the man's rented apartment, the Snake had other plans, far more ambitious.

"Have I made myself clear, darling? Do you have any other questions?" he asked his latest asset, the British woman so dull she could pass by unnoticed.

Nodding, Bianca walked towards the door. "Perfectly clear. I will make sure this time, I will not fail."

With the Snake's poison in the syringe, the blonde left for the hospital. Now she knew the room would be the third on the right, on the third floor of the western wing of the building. Her cover was ready and so were her spare change of clothes.

By the time the nurses changed shift, she managed to get into a storage room usually kept unlocked, changed, then went looking for the Dragon's dearest employee. Now, according to the Snake, if anything went wrong, she could easily kill up to five people with the contents of that one syringe. Determined to succeed this time, the woman diluted the poison into three other vials. It should also give her more time to escape, making this man suffer a slower death.

In her mind, it shouldn't be too much of a fuss. After all, who would work with the man who murdered her uncle and over a hundred others? Her target had to be just as rotten as the one he had been working for. It seemed to make sense, right?

Sure enough, she found the room and sneaked in as quietly as she possibly could. The patient was a man, as expected. In his thirties, with dark hair and tanned skin – obviously European by the shape of his face. He seemed unconscious, so Bianca neared him and checked his vital signs. His state was stable… In fact, he seemed to be doing quite good, according to the knowledge she had in the field.

"It would be such a shame to send you to hell…" the woman mumbled with a smirk. "Tell my uncle I said 'hi'. It's nothing personal, though."

Yet, her eyes widened in shock once she saw the target grinning at her. His eyes were barely open, but he was conscious and very aware of what she had just said. Panic washed over her in a cold sweat.

"I will… If I see him, of course."

She frowned. "What do you mean? You are a murderer and you will go to hell… If there is one, that is."

Diego didn't seem affected, though. "Guess I'm going to find out, huh? But let me ask… Your uncle was Vincent, right?" After a moment, he continued. "You call me a murderer, but I wasn't on the yacht that night… My boss and his girl weren't, either. Do you know why my boss wanted V. dead?"

Shocked, Bianca's hand had frozen on the syringe. This was not part of the plan, it was not how it should happen. On instinct, she pressed the needle into his perfusion and emptied the contents of the syringe. "No. I don't know and I don't care. Why should I even trust you?! You're a dead man!"

"Exactly. Why would I lie when I have a few minutes left…?" Diego chuckled. "You see… I'm useless now, but my boss won't let this pass. You will pay for me, just like V. paid for his wife. Ah…" he sighed, "if you only knew what a tortured soul Anastasia was… You would wish your uncle suffered in hell for all eternity, too."

Shaking her head, Bianca began to panic even more, losing her temper. Taking out the other vials, she opened them and forced Diego to drink it. When he spat it out, the blonde felt one of her eyes burning. The pain that followed was horrible, making her think her eyeball was melting. But there were a few little details she had forgotten. In their struggle, Diego managed to pull a few hairs – enough for a DNA sample, he could bet.

Soon though, his throat tightened and his heart rate began to quicken. It felt like his lungs were on fire, his heart trembling to keep up the pace and his head craving oxygen with the desperation only a dying man can know. The pressure made him think his eyes would pop right out of their socket, but he knew that was not going to happen. Instead, with his last drop of strength, he held onto Bianca. His hands clenched, one around the woman's arm and the other one in her hair, holding her with the rage of an animal. Still, the Italian grinned. It was a gruesome grin, like that of a psychopath typically shown in the media. It made Bianca struggle even more, until she threw her attacker away and he fell off the bed.

Several other nurses rushed in. Of course, it would be too late for Diego, but Bianca used it to her advantage.

"He attacked me! He is insane, I swear!" she cried, pointing towards the dying man.

Diego pointed his finger towards her, trying to call her out for her doing, but he could not move his mouth. His jaw was trembling and he could no longer feel his tongue or his throat. _'So that was it…'_ he thought as he began to hear something like a church's bells. _'It was fun while it last.'_

Once she was out of the hospital though, Bianca felt dizzy. Her right thigh felt strange too, there was a tingling sensation that wouldn't go away. She got into a cab and told the driver the address, then leaned in her seat and closed her eyes. Was she getting a fever, or was it just the scent of that car that bothered her a little too much?

"Driver? Do you mind leaving a window down?" she asked.

"…It's December. Yeah, I do mind. It's cold as hell tonight."

Pulling out a gun, Bianca held it to his head. "Oh, bloody hell! I told you to leave down a window, I don't care if your arse is freezing! Nothing will fall off, I assure you!"

With a strange look and a trembling finger, the driver pressed the button that let down the window on her side. It was cold as hell outside, but he sure didn't want his brains just as cold on his window.

After a moment, Bianca let down the gun and sighed. It felt like she had a sore throat, it hurt whenever she tried to swallow her saliva or inhaled. Luckily for her, they were there in a few minutes. Bianca paid, then got off. The ground seemed to be spinning around…

In the blink of an eye, the woman woke up in a strange bed, in a strange room. The first thing she checked were her clothes, which were still on. Her right arm was sore and she seemed to have a very ugly bruise. Also, her right sleeve had been rolled above her elbow. There was a strange taste in her mouth and every part of her felt numb. Dizzy, she laid her head back on the pillow and sighed.

The room smelled of smoke. She could see dark brown furniture and a pretty familiar green wallpaper. Before she could remember where had she seen it before, the woman's mind faded into darkness once more, even when she heard someone speaking. Whoever the person was, they were a second too late. Bianca had no idea of what they were saying.

All the while, Light was making use of his time. It seemed the Voice got it right this time, being possessive enough of Caterina to make her feel interested, but not rough enough to scare her away. Her moment of vulnerability was quickly turning into a heated make-out session, Light taking permission to get his hands all over her and Caterina just trying to claim the opportunity and return it.

She was cute, the Voice thought. The girl didn't really get to dominate him, unless he allowed her a moment, but it was nice to see her trying. However, when daddy got home, Light found out there was a reason Caterina didn't get involved with many.

In one move, the man caught Light by the collar and threw him against the nearest wall of the living room. It knocked the air out of him, leaving the teenager gasping for a second. It certainly didn't feel very good to have the Dragon glaring into his soul and pressing his fist against Light's neck.

"You cockroach! I should have left you to die!" the man growled. If he didn't like Light before, he certainly hated him now. Light with his hands all over his daughter wasn't what he expected to find after a long day.

"Padre, don't-!" Caterina quickly got up, but her father smashed Light into the wall again.

"Sir, please allow me… There is an explanation for this, perfectly valid," Light managed to say. In truth, his head hurt terribly. He was wondering if his skull was broken, or worse – if he will be getting some brain damage, like a small hemorrhage. He didn't have to be a medic to understand the gravity of such powerful hits.

"Then explain. You have five seconds," the Dragon said through gritted teeth.

"She invited me here," Light tried, "because we are together. We talked, I tried to comfort her."

"My daughter could have talked to me!" the man answered him, only making Light go into a state of panic. He could no longer think clearly, his thoughts were racing in a billion directions.

"Padre, stop! You didn't listen," Caterina shouted in a trembling voice. The girl had seen her father kill people with his bare hands for much less. She looked at both with red, hurt eyes, burning with unshed tears. "…If you kill him, we're done," she continued in a faint voice. "Done for good."

Turning from Light to his daughter and back, the Dragon eventually loosened his grip. With his head low, he sighed deeply and let go of Light. "…This scumbag will only use you, my love. Are you aware of that?" he asked her slowly, as if choking on every sound.

"On… the contrary, Sir, I… I am offering you my help," Light said, once he could feel his throat again. He certainly wasn't going to forgive and forget what had just happened. No, the Voice in him was angered, and the Dragon will pay for that. Just… a little later.

Caterina closed her eyes shot, breathed deeply, then began walking towards her room. "I don't care. Not as long as I get what I want."

"My darling-!" the Dragon called after her.

"Caterina?" Light did at the same time.

"I don't want to hear it!" Slamming the door, the girl left the two alone. It was the first time the Voice admitted in front of itself and in front of Light's other half… there may be a few similarities between himself and the Dragon.

After a long moment, the Dragon went to sit on his armchair. "Get up, boy," he ordered. "Is it true? Are you two… together?" the man spat in disbelief and anger.

Light did as he was told. "Of course we are. Why else would I have waited for her to return for over a year?"

Narrowing his eyes, the man studied Light. "My daughter is dating the son of a cop…" He seemed to be talking to himself, though Light bothered with a response anyway.

"My father happens to be one of the most brilliant in Japan, although I have my… personal doubts regarding the law system." Once he got the man's attention, Light sat across from him in Caterina's seat. "You know perhaps better than anyone, Sir. The system is flawed, and even when it is not, there will always be some who get away with crime. I realize this may not be the most believable coming from the son of the current police chief, but I have studied your methods, Sir, and I must say – they are the only surefire ways to ensure a criminal will be punished."

The Dragon didn't want to believe him. He had heard more than enough of those like him, pretending to support him so they could steal from him. The man was not going to let Light steal his daughter from him. "Let's pretend you mean what you say. In which way do you intend on proving yourself to me?"

Light cursed him in his mind. He hadn't been expecting that, though perhaps he should have… Perhaps it would be best to pretend he was innocent. After all, this trick got him through the most unfavorable situations. "I don't know, Sir, but as long as you tell me what exactly I should be doing, perhaps I can prove myself and be done with this discussion," Light shrugged. "It is nothing but a formality for us, anyway. Caterina told me about your problems lately. As I've said before, if I can be of any help…"

"I don't work with children," the Dragon began, "Unless… they are recruited very young, swear loyalty to me, and are educated and shaped into the men I need to work for me." The man knew very well teenagers had an almost completely developed personality and very stable mindset. Unlike young children, they were much more dangerous.

The moment he heard him, Light understood why the Dragon was still alive. Of course! He was like a father figure to many, like a brother to others, and he was still relying on that. A brilliant trick… Unfortunately though, to do such thing required time and money which Light didn't have. Well, he may have time, but he could not wait for children to grow up with his ideas in mind and worshipping his image. Unless… Yes, that will be it. His key to success – he had finally found it.

With the idea in mind, Light excused himself as he pretended to be talking on the phone to his father. It was exactly what he needed in order to return home and start building his own empire, founded on loyalty and worship. He wanted his name to be not only a fatherly figure, but _the_ fatherly figure. He wanted to associate his public-given name to that of a new god. The real one was dead, anyways. Either that, or permanently retired.

Soon enough, he was on his way. His blood was rushing through his veins by simply imagining it. He could be god, thanks to the Death Note… Yes, that was right. It was a supernatural notebook, above the understanding capacity of the common man. Thinking about it, Light began to fade as his darker half was taking control.

As soon as he entered his house, Light excused himself as very tired and went up to his room, turning on his computer and searching the internet. Every trend began there, every urban legend or myth. There was no better place to start building his image than on the dark and obscure blogs and forums, on the sites ran by others of his age or younger and populated with youth. It was always the young who started a real change, never the old and sick.

That night, the Voice took the name of Kira.

"But I am no killer…" Light thought out loud, mumbling to himself.

 _'Nor is God… Or was, at least. Not the most just of judges, was he…?'_ the Voice reasoned, to which Light simply had to agree. _'I am the strongest version of you. I am your strength, your savior… You turn to me when you are too weak, overwhelmed, when you feel like the sky is about to fall. I take care of everything you don't want to handle – and I will take care of this, too…'_ the Voice continued in his mind, as Light agreed hesitantly.

"Kira… The savior, the creator of a new world…" Light found himself muttering the words of his darker side. "Yes… That's right! There must be a reason why I found this notebook!" he spoke again, this time in a dialogue to his other side.

Creating a few accounts with usernames such as _'Justice'_ , _'Truthseeker'_ and a few others, Light began engaging in debates over the latest of his achievements. People believed him quite easily and Light found out what they thought. Some were confused, thinking they should name him Lucifer, after the prince of hell delivering punishments. Others thought they should call him the Heart Judge because of his unique signature kill.

There were theories that Kira was either a ferry spirit, a shinigami, or some god of the underworld – names going from Hades, to Yama, to Osiris, to Odin, and so on. Then, there were names of different deities that were given the role to judge the deceased. Some even thought Kira was the Grim Reaper himself! The Voice was amused to look up each and every single comparison and learn about it.

No surprise, there were pages and pages full of myths, deities, legends and religious beliefs. "So it seems, not only one god is on vacation. Apparently, they're all retired!" He picked fun at every single reference, once he had his facts right.

 _'We should just call him Kira. He seems to be the most active of gods these days,'_ he posted in a group conversation.

 _'That's right! He's not like those other imaginary gods, Kira is real,'_ someone replied whose username Light couldn't even pronounce.

 _'What makes you think he's a god of some sort?'_ a new person joined them.

 _'He punishes the criminals without even being there. Kira is everywhere,'_ Light replied, pleased to see the support of everyone there. At least ten people acclaimed his answer in the following minutes, boosting his confidence.

Light wasn't the only insomniac, though. The Snake was smoking cigar after cigar until he ran out, then opened a pack of cigarettes. Sighing out the smoke, he took his eyes off the screen and glanced through the open door towards a different room. He was on the couch, watching a black and white classic. In some way, he could relate to the character. Although the Snake didn't care much for his mother, he did have some sudden violent bursts. In his younger years, after he first saw the film, he remembered having replicated the most famous scene of that movie in a hotel room with a prostitute. When she was taking a shower, he picked up a large kitchen knife and repeatedly stabbed her just to see if her screams would match those of Vera Miles. He had been disappointed.

The Snake thought he saw some small movement. After a moment, he convinced himself it was only his imagination fooling him again. The man sucked the smoke with thirst, let it sit in his lungs for a moment, then let it out. He tried to make those smoke rings movie characters make with such ease. A few times, he even succeeded.

The man was bored. It was what he wanted to believe, though perhaps there might be the slightest chance for him to feel worried. That foolish blonde! Then again, who was the bigger idiot of them? Was it her, for somehow allowing herself be stabbed with the needle of that syringe, or was it him, for trusting a young, inexperienced, careless woman with the job?

From the hospital, Misa had been contacted by a woman. She had been the only saved contact of Diego who answered the phone and also the most recent number he had called. The blonde was watching an adaptation of Romeo and Juliet, desperately trying to keep her mind off that bad feeling in her gut. Just as Romeo was dying, the blonde took out her lollipop from her mouth and picked up.

"Yes? Misa-Misa here!"

 _'Miss Misa, we regret to inform you that, after an accident and some recent complications, Diego Abandonato had passed away today. There was nothing more we could have done… Miss Misa…? Miss, are you still there?'_ the voice kept calling from the other hand, but Misa's phone was slipping from her hand.

 _'Miss Misa…? We need you or someone from the family to claim the body, miss.'_

With her eyes glossy with tears and her mind spinning, the blonde could only mutter her answer. "I will… tell his family."

 _'Excuse me, miss, what is your relation-!'_ but before the other could finish her phrase, Misa had already flipped her phone closed.

"…Complications?" she asked herself, staring right through the whipping Juliet on the screen. That was just a play – the fantasy story of someone who has died a long time ago, right? But her story was real…

Heartbroken, the blonde remembered his last words before driving away. _'It's safer if you take off here. Take care, alright?'_ Then, he drove in a different direction from where those fancy hotels and business centers were. He drove towards the outskirts of the city… And then, he had an accident.

Misa couldn't understand. Why didn't he drive her all the way home? Why didn't Diego go back to his boss? Where was he going and why? Breathing in, she began to shiver. It couldn't be… He had just returned to her after forever! He simply could not be dead! She didn't even want to think the word, getting mad at herself when she did. Maybe if she didn't say it, there was still a chance it won't be true tomorrow.

Staring at the sky covered in clouds, Misa cursed her supernatural lover. Why was he doing that to her? Was she not allowed to care about anyone in this world? The girl remembered Anastasia again and before her, the two most important people in her life to that point. Why did her parents have to go? Why did Anastasia have to go, too? And now Diego – why? Holding her knees to her chest, the girl began to cry out all of her pain and anger, all her confusion and frustration. Misa cursed Death over and over, imagining she will have the chance to lecture her dark lover from a different world when her time will come. _'And he better be there, when my time is up!'_

A little past midnight, Caterina got a text. Annoyed, she thought it would be Light trying to ask her out or something of that sort. When she saw it was from Misa, the girl woke up for good and opened the message. As soon as she did though, her face turned blank. The girl never wanted to believe it, but she could see it coming and tried to pretend she was ready to hear these news.

Getting up, she went to tell her father. The auburn-haired girl knocked on his door and waited. "Padre… You need to see this."

The man was barely slumbering, too paranoid to let his guard down and fall asleep. Although tired, he didn't want to risk anymore – not after the last time. That night, Caterina had been taken from him and he had been locked in the room with a bomb just about to explode. His girl had ended up with a dislocated shoulder and two broken ribs because he allowed himself the luxury of deep sleep.

As soon as he heard her, the Dragon stood up and opened the door. "What happened? Why aren't you in bed?" he asked with concern. Instead of an answer though, Caterina only showed him the screen of her phone.

"…Who sent you this?" he asked after reading the message twice. With just three words, he felt his world crumbling.

"Misa did," his daughter replied. "Do you think it's real…?" Caterina was desperately hoping this would be just a set-up, a threat meant to frighten them both.

"Yes. This evening I got a voice message saying that others will _'pay'_ for my _'sins'_ ," the man answered. Shocked, he felt the need to sit on the edge of the bed. "I should have known…"

Enraged, Caterina pointed her finger at him. "This… This is your fault, and you know it. If you cared more about Diego, he wouldn't be dead now. You left him uncovered, like a pawn on the chess board. He was an easy target, all because of you!" Her voice was calm, but accusing.

Her father looked sown. "I know… But I will make him pay," he growled through his teeth, holding his both hands together, fingers laced and locking them together. The man had to hold that posture. Who knows what he might smash or punch otherwise? He wanted to torture the Snake for his own entertainment, now blaming him of three deaths.

First, the Dragon found out the Snake had ordered Anastasia's execution. Indirectly, he was also to blame for Vincent's accident. Now though, he had crossed the limit of the Dragon's politeness.

"Anything you do and anyone you kill won't matter. You can't bring him back," Caterina noted on a dry, bitter tone.

"Perhaps, but this is war… I will skin him alive and feed him his insides." The more he imagined it, the calmer he felt. The Dragon was rarely the type to dirty his hands – he had always paid others for that, people specialized in torture. However, this time it was personal. He wanted to see how much he could damage the Snake while keeping him alive and conscious.

"Do you want me to call Misa? She probably has some details," his girl offered and the Dragon nodded.

"But not here. I'm not in the mood to hear her." The man was in the mood to kill, trying to keep his self-control.

Nodding, Caterina went to her room, turned on the light and called Misa. It was late, but the blonde was certainly awake.

Once left alone, the Dragon stood and paced his room several times like a caged animal. His hands were trembling with rage and he could feel his throat tightening with anger. He was getting a headache going down on the back of his neck and spreading over his shoulders. _'Diego is dead',_ he read Misa's message again and again from memory. If there was one innocent working for him, it had been Diego.

The more he thought of him, the more enraged the Dragon felt. He never really saw Diego as a man – to him, he will always stay as a little crying boy, not understanding anything but looking up at him with the hope and trust only a five-years-old can show to a complete stranger. The Dragon remembered the day Diego set foot in his office with a scraped knee and elbow. His shirt was a little too small and his pantaloons too short, but his mother kept her promise. The child was healthy and clean.

That day, his mother received the equivalent of all the money he had sent her for the past five years, doubled in one day. He hasn't heard from the woman since… Not until someone told him she tried to make it back in the industry and someone killed her. His guards found her body in the trash. Now, Diego was dead…

Restless, the man went into the gym and began taking out his anger on the punching bag. He didn't get close to Diego while he was in the hospital exactly because he knew that would have made him a target. He hadn't realized that by leaving him alone, he was doing even worse. For the first time in many, many years, the Dragon felt his hands stained with blood – that of his brother. They may have had no real blood connection, but the Dragon considered him a brother. Diego was the only child of his adoptive father, after all.

In her room, Caterina was trying to hold back. When she could no longer control herself, she hang up on Misa and began crying silently. How many times had she ran away from some fancy fashion store, found Diego waiting in the car and complained to him about her mother? He would listen, laugh, then go buy her ice cream.

For the first time, Caterina was standing in front of a cold, hard fact. She had never imagined the fatality of death to be so heavy. Whoever her father tortured, whoever he would slaughter, it didn't matter anymore. None of that was going to bring Diego back. The girl no longer wanted a payback, she wanted him back – she wanted him with that optimist taken to ignorance and that goofy smile he put on whenever she tried to make him see reality.

In a way, it was frightening. All this time, it seemed like a game. Her father would kill bad people, corrupted and with no morals, the scum of society. Now though, she began to wonder… how did Diego die? What was he thinking when he knew his life would be shortened so? She began thinking of all those men her father slaughtered. They sure had families, who had friends and families and so on, in a spider web of grief. Her father might have finished off a bloodline, but it was only one thread of the web.

Perhaps… there was a point of view she never considered, one from where they looked like the bad guys they've been taking out together for the past year. The thought was coiling into her mind like a parasite. Her father, her hero had not only his hands stained… He was covered in blood. Caterina remembered how he looked that night she nearly got kidnapped, with the motel burning behind him. He was bruised, covered in ashes and blood. Her mind saw him as a Fallen, raising from hell and walking on earth. Now she knew she had never been as close to the truth as she had been that night.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _As usual, let's thank our favorite beta reader **AbandonedSock** for proofreading this chapter._

 _Now on with the references... The Snake is watching Psycho (1960), with that famous shower scene I think everybody knows even without having see the movie. It's interesting to see, if you've got a thing for psychos... and you just might, if you favor Light. The dialogue you hear in Bastille's song 'No Angels' are also from the same movie._

 _There are some theories that the prince of hell, Lucifer or however you want to call him - he's not exactly the evil maniac the media pictures most of the time. I think it's interesting to note the Voice thinks of the devil as simply someone punishing the evil, an idea which Kira would probably love to have associated with his name._

 _Diego's last name literally means 'abandoned' or 'forsaken'. This is the part where the more ironic of you will go "No shit?" but no, seriously, it kind of fits him - and not just the way he died. You didn't save him, so now I'm trying to make you feel bad for him, to be perfectly honest. Also, Diego's character was initially inspired by Matt._

 _No, it wasn't absolutely necessary for Misa to be watching Romeo and Juliet, though the ending of Death Note resembles that of Shakespeare's play... at least from Misa's romantic perspective. That will not happen in my story, so I decided to play that card now. Also, here's a **spoiler ** for the end of Gospel for the Wicked - Misa does **not** commit suicide after Light's death. That's a step further from a pathetic ending, right? _

_But enough with the references. I want to thank **toxic click** for leaving a review. I'm glad you find the story interesting, though I don't understand what you mean by "hating all of them". Do you hate all of the characters? If so, how do you keep reading? _

_As usual, review to make sure you get an update as soon as it's ready. Messages are always welcomed, I just thought I should remind you that. I'm glad to see new people who follow and favorite the story, as well._


	30. XXIX - Welcome to the Party!

_XXIX –Welcome to the Party!_

* * *

The Dragon no longer hesitated and took the matter into his own hands. He went to claim Diego's body and paid for an autopsy. Though he was initially told the results will be ready in a week, the man managed to arrange that Diego's case would have priority. He was told the results will be ready in three days.

Caterina was convinced it was murder, especially after she heard the nurses saying something about Diego having attacked one of the volunteers. She knew him well enough to know Diego would never attack anyone, unless he was defending himself. Even so, that wasn't enough to accuse anyone.

The police were there, as well as Light. They were talking to the nurses in the night shift and taking notes. To him, the story didn't seem logical enough. From what he had heard, Diego couldn't have had any sudden complications that would affect his behavior. All that Light could think of would be that the murderer had been with Diego when the man died. The rest confirmed him they were thinking of the same thing. Every nurse, doctor and volunteer was a suspect, even the auxiliary staff.

"Perhaps the surveillance cameras will show us something," Light suggested.

"We can't look over anything until the director agrees…" one of the policemen complained.

 _'And this is one reason I don't trust the law,'_ Kira thought. _'If he refuses to show us the footage, he certainly knows we will find our murderer that way.'_

"What about the syringe?" Light asked.

"It will be taken to the laboratory and tested. The nurses said they don't use that type," the policeman assured Light. "We will have the results this evening or tomorrow morning."

Light nodded. As soon as he was left alone, Caterina came up to him.

"Well…? Anything?" she asked in a hopeful voice. She was obviously tired and Light couldn't help but wonder if she had slept at all last night.

"They found a syringe that doesn't match those used in this hospital abandoned between the sheets. You were right, this does look like a murder case… A very careless murder. I think it may be the work of an amateur."

Her green eyes widened in surprise. "An amateur…?"

Light nodded. "Our killer left the murder weapon behind, didn't they? I don't think it is the work of a professional assassin. We also found blonde hairs on the floor."

Caterina looked away. So the Snake had a new asset… Was this the initiation of his new associate? But working with amateurs was risky, why would someone like the Snake do this? "It still doesn't make sense yet…"

"Yet," Light agreed, "But we will find the murderer, I promise. It's only a matter of time."

That morning, Bianca woke up again. She had lost all sense of time. The woman felt numb, gross, covered in her own sweat and terribly thirsty. Her throat ached… Swallowing her saliva, she felt the familiar pain in the muscles of her neck. Cautious, she first moved her fingers, then her arms and slowly got up on her elbows.

Looking around, the blonde realized she was in the same green room as before, still clothed, with her arm bruised and a killing headache. On instinct, she took her hand up and tried to feel the painful place on her head. Her scalp hurt so bad, she couldn't stand her own touch. She didn't feel any bandage though. _'It's not broken… That's good,'_ she thought.

Soon enough, a man walked in. He had just one leg and Bianca found herself staring at his scars. He seemed familiar, but the woman didn't really have a name to associate to his figure. His expression wasn't very friendly, but she didn't feel threatened either.

"How are you feeling?" he asked her on a calm and reserved tone.

"…Numb, I don't know," she mumbled. "What happened? Where am I?"

The man sat on an armchair in the room and looked at her in silence for a moment. "Don't you know?"

Thinking back, Bianca began arranging the flashes of her memory. "I… I-I killed a man…" she mumbled in a weak, trembling voice. The man nodded. "I took a cab and then… I don't know."

"You passed out. Did you hit your head?" the Snake asked her.

"I don't know… It hurts, but not like a bump. I don't think I did… It must be from something else," she eventually concluded.

The Snake listened and decided not to tell her the truth right away. Instead, he let her the rest of the day to recover. He let her use his room for a while longer, even if he couldn't really understand why. Perhaps it was the loneliness that had been killing him for the past year, since he had isolated himself from everyone else who might mock him for his scars and missing limb. Instead of trying to figure out why was he allowing the woman to stay in his bed with her clothes on, he decided to ignore any of these confusing, contradicting thoughts. There were more urgent matters to be solved.

The next day, Light received his final exam results. After handling his mother the papers, he excused himself into his room. It was already evening and he was tired – no lie, this time. That noon he ran from school to the police station in order to look over the lab results of the blonde hairs and the foreign syringe found in the bed of the victim.

Light googled the compounds he could remember from the report and he had a frightening surprise. The syringe contained a deadly cocktail of snake venoms. The cause of death for Diego could have been shock, suffocation, or heart failure. Perhaps it was a combination of all that eventually bought his death. Light's skin was crawling in disgust and fear just thinking of everything the man probably felt before he finally passed away.

Even so… his assassin was an amateur. They already had the DNA of the criminal and judging by those long hairs, it was most likely a woman. Kira couldn't wait for the investigation to drag the murderer out from the shadows so he could set up her grand finale. Certainly, she deserved a bit more than just a heart attack. Should he make her jump off a building? Or in front of a train? Maybe he will make her be eaten by stray dogs. Would it be possible for the Death Note to do that? It would be a horrible death, maybe even matching in pain and terror with Diego's final moments.

Light took out his notebook and looked over the names he had already written. They were so many… All lined up in columns like convicts on a death row. He was proud… Kira was overjoyed to see what he had accomplished so far. All of those criminals were dead, out of the streets for good and with no chance of breaking loose again. After all, nobody returned from hell, right? It was the safest prison for them. But just as he was preparing himself to write some more, Light heard a voice behind him and to the right, where his window was.

"You've taken quite a liking to it." It was hoarse and sounded amused, though Light turned around in fright. There was nobody supposed to be there.

Outside it was pouring. The rain was threatening to turn into a storm and when the lightning stroke somewhere in the distance, Light saw a creature he couldn't have ever imagined. A barely humanoid figure, hunched, with abnormally long and skinny limbs, all dressed in black. Its skin was the ashen gray of corpses, but what scared Light the most was its face. Round eyes seemed to be popping out of their sockets, yellow like those of liver disease patients. It had a wide grin and its teeth were uneven and sharp like the jaws of a shark. Shocked, Light tried to back away so fast, he fell off his chair. Not even in his worst nightmares had he seen anything as ugly, as distorted as the thing before him.

"No reason to act surprised," the thing continued on the same amused tone, "I am the shinigami Ryuk. That used to be my notebook. Judging by your laughter, you've already figured out that what you have is no ordinary notebook."

Taking over, Kira calmed down his other half. Once he felt secure enough, he held onto his chair and got up. "Shinigami… A god of death, huh? Well, I'm not surprised. In fact, Ryuk, I've been waiting for you."

His words surprised the creature still standing by his window. "Oh…?"

"I already figured out that this Death Note I've found is real," Kira explained. "Didn't take me long. And now, that I've witnessed the proof of its power, I only feel more comfortable in what I'm gonna do."

"That's interesting. I certainly wasn't expecting this," the shinigami said. "Several Death Notes had made their way into the human realm in the past, but you're the first to have written this many names. Look at how many people you've killed in only five days! Most are reluctant to write this much."

Sitting back at his desk, Kira smiled. "I've already prepared myself for this, Ryuk. I used the notebook, even though I knew it belonged to a shinigami, and now that shinigami has come. So, what will happen to me? You're here to take my soul, right?" Light knew enough stories of people finding strange objects with supernatural powers and using them. There were fairy tales, legends, myths of all kinds, parables – but always, there was some price to pay for these items.

"Hn? What do you mean?" Ryuk asked, obviously confused. "Is that some fantasy you humans came up with? I'm not gonna do anything to you," the shinigami assured Light. That surprised him. "The notebook becomes part of the human realm from the very moment it touches the earth. In other words," the death god explained while pointing towards it, "the notebook is now your's."

Light looked down at the Death Note in his hands. It was hard to believe… "This… is mine?" he hesitantly asked. Did he understand correctly?

"If you don't want it, just give it to someone else!" the shinigami grinned. "But if you give it away, I'd have no choice but to erase your memories of the notebook."

"So, then…" Kira began, demanding to know if he was getting everything right, "You're saying I can use the Death Note all I want and I won't be punished?"

"Let's just say this – you will feel the fear and pain known only to humans who've used the notebook. And when it's your time to die, it will fall on me to write your name in my Death Note. Be warned – any human who's used the Death Note can neither go to heaven, nor hell for eternity. That's all." Ryuk laughed. "Now you have something to look forward to when you die."

A knock on his door frightened Light again.

"Light?" he heard his mother from the outside.

"It'll be alright," Ryuk assured him. "Answer it."

Quickly, the teenager slipped the notebook under his bed and went to open the door of his room. "What is it?" he asked his mother. He couldn't help but feel a little agitated.

"I thought you'd like some apples," his mother said with a kind smile. "The neighbors bought them over for us," she explained. "Why on earth is it so dark in your room? You'll ruin your eyes like that."

Panicked, both Light and Kira were trying to understand. _'What's going on?'_ he asked his darker side. _'Mom can't see him…?'_

"I'll turn the light on, then. I haven't noticed it's gotten this dark," Light said as he took the basket with the apples and thanked his mother. As soon as he did, he closed the door and returned to his desk. He wanted some explanations.

"That notebook you found originally belonged to me," Ryuk clarified the situation before Kira could demand it. "And since you're now using it, you are the only one who's able to see me. And, of course, my voice can only be heard by you." Picking up one of the apples, Ryuk continued. "In other words, the Death Note is the bond between Light, the human, and Ryuk, the shinigami." Taking a bite of the apple, the death god was surprised by its texture and taste, chewing it with pleasure. "Yum!" Soon, he was devouring every apple in the basket.

"I just have one more question I want to ask you," Kira said, demanding the entity's attention. "Why was I chosen for this?" The death god was busy stuffing his face with apples, though. "Hey, are you even listening?"

"Apples in the human realm are worth the trip. What's the best way to describe these…?" it seemed to be talking to itself, still staring at the empty basket, "Juicy?"

"Just answer my question!" Kira demanded. He was already annoyed with the shinigami and with the situation at large. He didn't feel in control.

Ryuk chuckled. "I didn't choose you. Don't you see this is all just an accident? You actually thought you were chosen because you're so smart, or something? Don't be so vain. It just happened to fall around here and you just happened to pick it up, and that's all there is to it. That's why I wrote the instructions in English – the most popular language in the human world."

"Then why did you drop it in the first place?" Light demanded. It didn't look like an accident to him, especially not after all of his reasoning built around him being chosen to rid the world of criminals. He was mad, frustrated. This was not what he expected to hear. "You even wrote down specific instructions, so don't try to tell me this was an accident."

"You're asking me why? …I did it 'cause I was bored," came the shockingly simple answer. "The truth is, shinigamis don't have much to do these days. Most of the time we're either taking naps or gambling. If you take the time to write names in your notebook, the others just laugh at you for working so hard. Even if you wrote the name of another shinigami, it'd be pointless because they wouldn't die. And since we live in the shinigami realm, it brings us no amusement to kill those in the human world. So I figured I'd have more fun if I came down here myself. Anyway, I'm surprised by how many names you've written," the shinigami said while looking through the pages of Light's Death Note. "But I want to know why you only wrote the cause of death for that guy who was hit by the truck."

Kira began to smile. "If you don't write down the cause of death, the victim dies of a heart attack – and that's probably the best thing about the Death Note, Ryuk. You see, I've already exhausted the list of the world's most major criminals, and eventually, I'm going to get rid of them all."

Trying and failing to understand, Ryuk asked, "What's the point of doing that?"

"It's only a matter of time before people figure out that these criminals are being eliminated by someone. I want the world to know of my existence, that there's someone out there passing judgment on the wicked," Kira explained. Just the thought of it was enough to make his blood boil with excitement.

"Why even bother?" Ryuk asked again, still not getting it. "What are you trying to achieve by passing judgment on them? I mean, why do you care?"

Light stepped past the entity and looked outside his window at the street darkened by the rain and the gray clouds hanging heavy over the city. "Because… I've been bored, too. I wasn't ready to believe it at first, but it's obvious now. There's something about the Death Note itself that makes humans want to try it out at least once. This world… is rotten, and those who are making it rot deserve to die. Someone has to do it, so why not me? Even if it means sacrificing my own mind and soul, it's worth it, because the world… can't go on like this! I wonder…" Kira went on in his speech, "what if somebody else had picked up this notebook? Is there anyone out there other than me who'd be willing to eliminate the vermin from the world? If I don't do it, then who will? The authorities? The corrupted businessmen pretending to be heroes for a day? That's just it, there's no one! But I can do it. In fact, I'm the only one who can! And I'll do it… Using the Death Note, I'll change the world!"

The shinigami was listening, rather intrigued by this human's ambitions. He tried to understand him simply so it would make his experience in the human realm worth his time.

"At first I wrote the names of the worse criminals I could think of, like I was cleaning out the world – one name at a time, so that eventually, no one will ever do anything evil again. And while the truly guilty ones who deserve to be punished die of heart attacks, the people who are less guilty but who still cause trouble for others will slowly be erased through disease and accidental death. Then and only then, the world will start moving in the right direction. It will be a new world, free of injustice and full of people who I've judged to be honest, kind, and hardworking."

"But if you did that, it would make you the only bad person left," the death god drew his attention on the logical conclusion.

"Huh…? I've got no idea what you're talking about," Light innocently replied. "I'm a hardworking honor student who is considered to be one of Japan's best and brightest. And I…" Kira continued his other half's answer, "I will become the God of this new world!"

Ryuk grinned. The dark clouds were spreading and a few sunrays were peeking through. "By the way…" the shinigami said, "Aren't you forgetting something?"

For a moment, Light looked as if he had just woken up from a dream. "What do you mean?"

"Is this another human thing to leave threats between treats? As far as I know, that night of the year has passed."

Light looked at the empty apples basket only to find a note. The text had been printed, it wasn't handwritten and Light had no idea who could it be from. All it said was _'The reason of your Fall'_ in cursive letters. "My… fall?" Light frowned.

"What does it mean?" the shinigami asked, intrigued by the situation. He was eager to find out more about this human and his story, because it was already obvious he had done something pretty bad… other than using the Death Note. Or perhaps that was it? Ryuk couldn't wait to find out.

"I'm not certain…" Kira's enthusiasm was gone in a split. Instead, he called Caterina to inform her. When she didn't pick up, he decided to go down into the living room and see if he can find out which one of the neighbors had brought them the apples.

The reason why Caterina wasn't picking up her phone was at least convenient for her. Shin had called her to meet at a café, but she convinced him to join her for dinner at the restaurant of the hotel. The girl didn't find it important enough to contact her father though – the man was currently away and that meant he most likely had something urgent to solve.

"What did you want to talk about?" the girl asked with a smile. Her phone was vibrating in her purse, but Caterina ignored it.

Shin heard, but if she wasn't going to pay it any attention then perhaps he shouldn't either… Sighing, the boy lowered his head. "I'm not sure how to put this… I mean, I think your father is pretty rich, right?"

The phrase had caught her attention. Caterina nodded, keeping her green eyes glued to him, even if he avoided her. "Yes… What exactly do you know?"

"I-I'm not a stalker or anything, I just noticed your phone, your driver and so on. I just thought your father must have some business or something that's going well." The boy was nervous, jumpy, immediately feeling accused.

"Shin, look at me," the girl asked him. "I never said you were a stalker. I'm not accusing you of anything, I just want you to relax, okay? Take a moment."

Nodding, the boy looked around once again. "Can anybody hear us here?" he asked hesitantly.

"No," Caterina quickly reassured him. "The guards are hired by my father. There's really no reason to act so agitated, this restaurant is perhaps the safest in town."

The teenager breathed in a few times. "Alright, I will take your word for it. I wanted to meet with your father too. I think you're in danger, Caterina," he began. "I don't want to scare you, but…"

Caterina nodded, waiting for him to continue. "It's alright, go on."

"I told you I work, right?" he asked and the girl gave a small nod. "I usually stop on my way back and do the groceries at a small store that's open late. It's right in the bus station. I was waiting for the bus – it's only one an hour at night so sometimes there are more people waiting…"

The girl was running out of patience. "Yes, Shin? What happened?"

"Well, there was this guy there. He asked me for a lighter, but I don't smoke so I told him no. Then, he showed me this huge stack of money… I'm not sure how much was that, but it was a stack… kind of this tall," he gestured. "He could barely hold it."

"Why would he offer you so much money?" Caterina asked.

Shin bit his lip. "It's… kind of embarrassing. He thought you were my girlfriend and, uh…"

"Yes…?" the girl said, waiting for him to continue.

"…He, um… told me to bring you to a bar. He said something about someone who wants to meet you, but your father doesn't agree, or… something like that." Shin couldn't even stand to look at her, feeling ashamed of his situation.

Instead of judging him, Shin was surprised to see the auburn-haired girl staring off into the distance. She had her lips pursed, apparently chewing her tongue and frowning slightly.

"Did he say which bar?" she asked after a moment.

Shin shook his head. "I don't think he did."

"Have you seen the guy's face?"

"He was wearing a hood. I know he has a pointy chin, that's all. A little taller than me. Are you going to tell the police?" he asked, feeling a little less anxious. He thought Caterina would be afraid, perhaps even accuse him of lying – it wasn't the most believable story, right? But it was true.

"No… You will tell my father too, but not right now. For now, I want you to go along with the offer."

Shin frowned in confusion. "Wait… Why not call the police?"

"You haven't gone there yet, right?" she asked. When he shook his head, she smiled. "Good. You see, if they can offer you so much to bring me to a certain bar, then they can most likely corrupt a few policemen as well. We can't trust them right now – or anyone else. Instead, I want you to meet with that guy again and tell him you've had a change of heart. When he tells you the exact place and time, return to me. My father will take care of the matter from there."

The teenager sighed. "Caterina, what will happen…? This whole situation sounds like a bad movie about the underground business. I don't want to get involved in this, I was just worried for you. I don't want anyone trying to hurt you…"

The girl was growing annoyed by his words. Initially, she thought Shin could compare to Light. He seemed confident, with a strong mind and will, rebellious enough to claim his own life and with a pretty sharp mind. Now though, she only saw him as hesitant and confused. Shin was making her regret she had ever labeled him as one of the strong ones. He was yet another weakling, or perhaps he was the mediocre type her father had warned her about.

"Look, if they know about you, then you are already involved. Now you can either do as I say and we will both get out clean, or you can act on your own, make some foolish mistake and sink somewhere in between us and them."

"Caterina, who are 'They'?!" Shin asked on the verge of despair.

"…The people who are behind my mother's assassination," she said in a low voice. "That's all you need to know for now. So, are you with me or not?"

The boy looked at her with small eyes. "…Just once, I am. But there are others depending on me – innocents. I can't afford to go to jail, I can't even afford dying. Can you guarantee I will come out clean?"

Caterina returned him the cold look. "My father can. Your only role is to do what I told you. With that, you are done."

All this time, the Snake was trying to enjoy his dinner. He found out from the news that Bianca's syringe had been found and the substances used, identified. Everyone was shocked of how strange the case appeared, titled the _'Amateur Assassin'_. It looked like a joke from the outside. The police had Bianca's DNA and her finger prints. They were trying to get the security camera recordings from that night as well.

"…Tell me again, lemon pie, how did you manage to make so many mistakes in one go?" he sighed. The food was barely going down his throat from how angry he was, but even so, the Snake tried to appear calm. After all, all women seemed to be scared out of their skin whenever they saw him a little more furious than usual.

The blonde sighed. "I'm sorry! I've been apologizing for the past two days, what more can I do now? …It's not like I can go back and clean the scene of any clues." She was still weak, getting dizzy whenever she tried to stand up and nauseous most of the time. Apparently, these were simple side-effects of having been poisoned, though she hated every second of it.

"It so happens that I am not Merlin and you are not Sir Arthur's female alter-ego," he man spat out with so much irony, it reminded Bianca of her uncle, Vincent.

"I still can't believe you used snake venom to kill that guy…" Bianca mumbled.

"Why?" the man leaned towards her from his office chair. "Is it too ironic for you? I thought your country was the birthplace of irony and sarcasm."

"It's just too mainstream! It's like Spiderman wrapping someone in spider web. It works in a movie, but it's just too… obvious! It's tasteless in real life," she tried to explain her disapproving of his method.

The Snake began grinning, then chuckling. "What if I told you we all have our signature? The Dragon burns people – how obvious is that? Lucky 8 breaks their teeth and twists the head backwards. Black Panther rips them to bits or feeds them to his pets. Kanye Bail supposedly eats them. Vitto Vittorio drains them of their blood."

Bianca cringed. "Who does that guy think he is, Dracula?"

"Something of that sort. He supposedly identified with a book character."

Still horrified, Bianca set her plate on a side table. "You, people, are just sick. And who would actually eat people? That's just disgusting."

The Snake simply shrugged. "That's the rumor, anyway. Whatever the guy is doing, nobody ever finds the bodies of those he kills. You must admit it takes a professional team of hitmen and assassins to achieve that."

The blonde sighed. "I suppose… If that was another sting about that night, I don't want to hear it. I blew it, I get it. And I don't want to hear any joke about me blowing anything," she continued when she saw the man's expression.

He rose his hands in self defense. "Alright, no jokes this time around. But out of curiosity, what happened there that went so terribly wrong?"

In her mind, she could hear Diego's last words. _'You will pay for me, just like V. paid for his wife.'_ The more she thought of it, the more she felt her values and beliefs crumbling under Diego's words. Could her uncle have really been a murderer…? Biting her lip, she looked away from the Snake. "He was conscious and I panicked. That's all."

Sighing, the man shook his head. "I should have known…"

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _As always, this chapter had been proofread by my beta, **AbandonedSock**. _

_There is a reference at the end of this chapter I'd be glad if you took the time to check out. The names the Snake mentions are all fictional. "_ Vitto Vittorio drains them of their blood. [...] He supposedly identified with a book character." _The book is **Vittorio the Vampire by Anne Rice** and if you haven't read it yet, go read it now. It's basically Romeo and Juliet with vampires and angels thrown in and lots of supernatural action on the side. _

_I'm still waiting for reviews. If you're out there and still reading, I want to hear from you. If you don't want to review, PM me instead._

 _Also, I'll be taking requests for one-shots in this fandom. You can choose a canon character or an OC of mine, dead or alive, at any time. I will need to know the main character/s and the premise of the one-shot. I will not write anything yuri or yaoi, but other than that, feel free to ask._


	31. XXX - Setting the Stage

_XXX – Setting the Stage_

* * *

Living with the Snake for a few days, Bianca had grown more comfortable around him. Although there was a king-sized bed in the room where she was allowed to stay, the man never slept there. Creeping into the room and staring at her while she slept or invading her privacy when she changed? Sure! Actually touching her or trying to share the bed? Not once. From this point of view, Bianca thought she should feel lucky, though privacy was a word the Snake didn't know.

Either way, him being so unattractive with his scars and missing leg and her being 'too flat', with 'too big' shoulders, and a nose 'like a tea pot' made her feel a little less uncomfortable. The man was a mystery – perhaps his traumatic experiences shaped him that way? Regardless, Bianca knew he had saved her life some time after she had passed out. The woman had no idea exactly why he helped her, but she was too afraid to ask.

Waking up early, she hoped to get some privacy before the Snake woke up. She went to the bathroom with a change of clothes and filled the tub with water. It had been a while since she was able to relax for half an hour and clear her mind.

Around the same time, Light saw Caterina in front of the school. It seems her father had hired another driver to take her to school, though he couldn't see the replacement's face.

"How are you?" he asked once Caterina caught up with him. "What happened yesterday?"

"Oh, that's right. You called, didn't you?" She seemed to be still a little sleepy. "I forgot to call back."

Ryuk was floating backwards before them, studying Light's new friend. She looked troubled… How exciting!

"Why didn't you pick up?" Light asked her again.

"Yes, about that… Bad timing, to be honest. I was talking to someone over dinner." Caterina sighed. "I can't believe just how desperate some people can possibly be! You remember Shin, right? We talked and you got all jealous over that," the girl began, only sparking Ryuk's interest even more.

 _'_ _Is she your girlfriend, Light? You never mentioned you had a girlfriend!'_ the shinigami almost sang.

Annoyed by both the memory and Ryuk's remark, he nodded. "Yes, what about him? Were you dining with him now, like _colleagues_?"

Caterina laughed at his tone. "Something like that. Before you kill him though, it didn't go the way you think it did. Actually, I may need him…"

"Oh, so now you need him, too!" Light growled as Ryuk laughed beside him.

"Please! Why are you so jealous all of a sudden? I need him to get me some information. He's been offered money to bring me to someone and I think we both know who is most likely behind this," the girl clarified.

"What if he's lying?" Light asked. He didn't like Shin before, but the more he heard Caterina talking about him, the more his dislike was turning into hate.

Carelessly, the girl shrugged. "Then I'll find out and bang!" She held her index and middle finger forward and her thumb up, pretending to be firing a gun towards Ryuk.

"Why even bother? You're so well-guarded, nobody could ever get close enough to hurt you in any way," he pointed out.

"Because!" the girl protested. "I miss going out without five bodyguards following me. I want to go shopping and talk to people and try things on – it's no fun buying everything online. I want to find another tea house like the White Elephant with that chill atmosphere. Don't you understand? I feel like a bird in a cage, I'm suffocating!"

Light sighed heavily once she was done. "I understand that, but it's just temporary."

"Yes, until you-know-who is…" The girl used her thumb to point towards the ground. "…Why did you call, anyway? We agreed to only call if something urgent comes up."

Ryuk was floating behind them. _'Are you going to tell her here? Aren't you worried you will be overheard?'_

As expected, Light ignored him. Instead, he took out the note Ryuk had spotted in the basket. "Last night, my mother said the nephew of a neighbor sent us some red apples. I checked and that neighbor has no brothers or sisters, neither does his wife, so he couldn't possibly have a nephew. This was at the bottom."

Caterina read the note. "This is getting on my nerves," she growled. "Did that guy hit his head, or what? Is he going to become a priest next?"

 _'_ _Who is she talking about?'_ Ryuk asked as soon as the girl closed her mouth. _'Light?'_

"I don't understand it," Light addressed Caterina.

"Red apples are generally associated with the apple Eve gave to Adam before they both fell. That's the only reference I can think of. It's probably a warning," Caterina explained with a sigh.

"…To stay away from you. Am I right?" he asked just as they were entering the building. Of course, Light let her walk in first.

"I suppose… At least Padre will agree to that," she mumbled, walking up the stairs.

 _'_ _Light…?'_ the shinigami called behind him. _'Light!'_ It flew before him and even hung upside-down. _'Hey, Light!'_

Once in the classroom, Light sat in his usual seat and tried to pay attention. It was a little difficult to ignore Ryuk all day long, though he knew very well he could not afford the risk to answer him.

"Alright then, Yagami?" the teacher called. "Please recite this line for us."

"Sure," he answered as he stood up and found the page in his textbook. " _'Having finally made his dream a reality, he was overwhelmed – both by the magnitude of his achievement and by the joy and happiness that it had brought him.'_ "

"That was very well done, but I'm not surprised, of course. Absolutely flawless, very good! Well then, we'll leave it at that for today!" The teacher began gathering his papers, textbook and pens – just like everybody else. Light was hurrying to write another name or two before it would become too suspicious.

Soon enough, he joined everyone else and gathered his things. Ryuk stood up and stretched, holding his shoulder. _'I thought it would never end…!'_ he sighed. _'How do you do this every day? It's so boring here! Eh! Where are you going?'_ Realizing he was being left behind, the shinigami caught up with Light. _'Hey, Light! Are you listening to me?'_ it continued to ask, feeling terribly bored and left out completely. There was no fun in being ignored for six hours.

"Don't talk to me!" Light eventually mumbled in a low voice. "Unlike you, people can still hear me when I talk out loud."

After being called boring the hundredth time that day, Light continued to ignore the shinigami. He turned down a guy in the tennis club before he could even finish addressing the invitation, then kept going on his way. More than ever, Light was motivated to go home.

 _'_ _You don't have anything to do. Aren't you just going to go home and hang out in your room, as usual?'_ the death god asked. Perhaps there was a chance he didn't know Light's plans and he really did have something better to do.

"What are you talking about? Of course I have something to do," he answered in a low voice, as usual. "Yes… Something very important."

When he got home, his father was not there. Light didn't worry though – his father was rarely home before 5 p.m. He began growing suspicious when he noticed the hours passing by and his father was still absent.

Little did he know just how much of a problem that day will become. The Police Chief was attending an ICPO meeting along with one of his youngest subordinates. The main discussion topic was the number of sudden heart attacks suffered by some of the most notorious criminals – most of which had no known heart conditions that could have explained their deaths.

"There are other criminals whose deaths are unaccounted for."

"In which case, the death toll could be well over one hundred!"

"Good morning, Chief!" Matsuda greeted his superior in a hushed voice. "They started the meeting without you."

"That's fine", the man responded, "I had to take an urgent call from headquarters."

"In any case," someone said through his microphone, "These were criminals who were probably facing execution sooner or later. Perhaps we shouldn't-!"

"Why should it matter whether it's a criminal or someone innocent?" someone in the front punched the desk. "The last time I checked, murder was still murder!"

"It's still too early to consider these a homicide," the man from before joined in again, the one who spoke right as the Chief was finding his seat.

The debate degenerated quickly into a rather heated argument. Of course, no one had any idea why were criminals suddenly getting heart attacks all at the same time. Some even rushed to accuse the FBI or CIA. Some even argued it would be pointless investigating this case, considering they didn't even know where to start.

"If that's the case, it seems we'll have no choice than to bring in L!" the one who appeared to be leading the meeting said and as soon as he spoke, everyone went quiet.

"Ah, Chief… what's this L he's talking about?" Matsuda leaned over and asked in a whisper.

"Right, I forgot it is your first time attending this conference. We don't know L's real name or whereabouts. In fact, we still don't know what he looks like. However, he's managed to solve every case he's ever taken on – and he's tackled some of the greatest mysteries this world has ever known. He hides in the shadows, but he's the best of the best. A last resort – our trump card."

Just as remarks about L's pickiness when it comes to the cases he wants to solve were being shout, someone walked in from a side door. He was tall, completely dressed in black, with a trench coat and a hat hiding any possibly recognizable features. The man was carrying a laptop.

"Gentlemen, L has already began his investigation into these incidents." Needless to say, everyone was shocked. "Please be silent," the man demanded. "L would now like to address the delegates."

 _'_ _Greetings to all of you at the ICPO. I am L,'_ a robotic voice said thought the speakers.

At the same time, the Dragon was meeting up with his daughter and the boy who claimed somebody had offered to pay for his services. All of them knew the gravity of the situation as they sat around a table at the restaurant on the first floor of the hotel where they lived. Caterina was on her father's right side as Shin sat across from them both.

"Normally, I would not allow my daughter to handle anything of such importance. Not yet, that is…" the man spoke, occasionally watching Caterina. "However, this may be a good occasion for her to learn something. I am assuming you already know the risks."

Shin seemed more confident than he had been when talking to Caterina, but on the inside he was just as nervous – if not more so. "I don't know if Caterina has already told you, but this is rather important to me. I cannot afford going to jail or dying. I hope I am making myself clear."

The Dragon looked at him with small, cold eyes that sent a cold chill down the boy's spine. "It is not my concern. You will pay for any mistakes you do. In other words, if you do everything as planned, you should be able to go on with your life as before."

Enraged, Shin looked at Caterina. "You promised me he can guarantee this." Although mad, the boy was trying his best to sound calm.

"And my father is more than capable of that. I never said anything about his will." The girl was much calmer. She had taken the time to think everything through and knew Shin had no way of backing out now.

"Why are you the one mad about the situation?" the man asked, clearly annoyed.

After a moment, the boy looked up with desperate eyes. "I have children to care for. They depend on me entirely. I cannot afford to leave them on their own, not at this age."

Already spotting an opportunity, the Dragon nodded. "I see… If that bothers you so much, I can take them in the moment you make any fatal mistake. They will be raised better than in a public institution."

Thinking for a moment, Shin began to calm down. "I don't want my brothers to wind up as criminals."

"They will not," Caterina answered him instead. "My father has done this many times before. The children he took in are now bank directors, politicians, presidents, managers, generals… Of course, a few ended up as cooks, drivers, or bodyguards, but only out of their own will."

"What about me? What if I succeed in this mission?" the boy asked. He was interested in the money he would get, but didn't know how to ask.

The Dragon smirked weakly. "How large was the stack of dollars you were offered?"

Shin held out his hand and showed its approximate size from memory. "The guy could barely hold it. It was something like this…"

"How many brothers do you have?" the man asked next.

"Two. They are twins, six years old," Shin answered.

"I will pay you three times as much as you can hold in one hand in $100 bills," the Dragon promised him. "Of course, for that you will need to come out with your hands clean. Don't make any mistake that could cost you the rage of anyone or catch the attention of the police. You will be paid when it will be clear you have done your job perfectly."

"When will that be?" Shin asked.

"Depends. A month, at most," Caterina clarified. "If anything happens there, the money will remain in a bank account for your brothers. By the time they grow up and become capable of using them, the sum should be even larger."

Nodding, Shin tried to calm down. "…When do I go, then?"

"Tonight. With a bit of luck, they will approach you again with an even better offer," Caterina assured him. "Remember - take the money, ask everything you would need to know and pretend to go along. Everything you can take from them you are free to keep and use as you wish." It had been the girl who had thought through the situation and came up with the plan. "That's all."

Nodding, the boy stood up, bowed his head in respect and fear, then turned around and left the restaurant. He sighed and ran a hand through his dark curls, pushing them back from his forehead. He was more than nervous – but if getting this job done meant receiving so much money, he was willing to take it. How difficult could it be to just get in, talk the details, walk out and then tell Caterina everything? Besides… even if he failed, he could die in peace knowing his brothers will have the chance to a better life than what he could have offered them.

Shin went towards the station where he usually took the bus home. It was in the outskirts, on the edge of a bad quarter where the police rarely ventured and cabs refused to take orders. The quarter was nowhere near as poor as his, but it was populated by gang members, criminals, drug dealers and whatnot. It was still plain daylight, but the boy hoped he would be approached again. Patiently, he sat down and waited.

Well aware of the dangers but also of the safety it offered, Light was venturing into the same quarter. He had found an abandoned building what didn't look to be owned by any gang and decided to claim it as the hiding place of the Death Note. Ryuk was confused, but that wasn't anything new.

 _'What are we doing here, anyway?'_ the shinigami asked. _'I don't understand why we're sneaking around this dump. Tell me!'_

 _'_ _Isn't it obvious?'_ Kira answered him through his mind, "You told me that everyone who touches the Death Note will be able to see you. I can't afford to carry something this dangerous with me anymore. Up until now, if my family ever found the notebook, I thought that I could tell them I was keeping records of various criminals in preparation of becoming a detective one day, but I'm walking a very fine line right now." Working with a bunch of chemicals and applying everything he had studied in Chemistry and Physics class, Light was using his genius to secure the Death Note. "I don't want to think about it, but if I make one mistake, I might end up killing my own family."

But Kira wasn't the only one laying himself a safety net. The devil knows a lot can happen in one year, and for the Snake, it sure did. Having been left alone in Japan and without the threat of the Dragon, the man had managed to buy some of his rival's men. He was surprised, to say the least. Many of them had really high ranks, to the point where he even bought himself a live transmission of an ICPO meeting. This was also the reason Bianca was able to bathe without interruptions – the man had something far more interesting to watch.

 _'_ _The difficulty of this case lies in its unprecedented scope – and make no mistake, we are facing an atrocious case of mass murder, one that is unforgivable. This case cannot be solved without the full cooperation of the ICPO, that is all of the police organizations you represent throughout the world. You need to make the decision to fully support the investigation as is needed. Also, I will require additional cooperation from Japan's National Police Agency,'_ L's robotic voice demanded through the speakers.

Surprised, Matsuda and his superior stood up and the Police Chief took the freedom of asking the question on everyone's lips. _'Why Japan in particular?'_

 _'_ _Whether the guilty party is an individual or a group, there is a strong possibility that they're Japanese,'_ the robotic voice answered. _'Even if they're not, we can be sure they're hiding in Japan.'_

Bianca came in, fully dressed and with her hair dry. She couldn't believe the Snake had left her alone for more than half of the day – it was a premiere in the past week and her feminine intuition warned her it will most likely never happen again. At the same time, the woman was aware there had to be a really good reason for this, which judging by their situation, had to be some grave problem showing up. When she walked in, the blonde saw what the man was watching on his TV screen.

"What's that?" she asked. It didn't look like a movie and it didn't have the logo of any TV channel on it. Immediately, the Snake hushed her.

 _'…_ _you ask?'_ the robotic voice continued as the Snake growled. He had missed a few words. _'I think I will be able to provide you with the proof of that after I directly confront the culpit.'_

Bianca sat on the couch beside the Snake, leaving a safe distance between them. "What are they talking about?"

The man frowned. "…There's this organization killing off criminals, starting with the most renowned. It's like they are following a hit list. Their method is a sudden heart attack and nobody knows who they are, or how are they capable of killing this way and work so accurately and so clean… The police has no clue. So far, I thought it was some secret operation to frighten the outlaws, but I was wrong."

"You mean Kira?" she asked again, this time receiving a nod in response. "Who are they talking to? The guy hiding his voice…"

"That's L," the Snake answered. "The guy hides himself so well, I have no idea who he is. Nobody dares to confront him – not even the most powerful of us. Trust me when I say, the Italian Mafia steps out of his way when L decides to take a case. The FBI treats him as their superior. Whoever he is, the guy is good… He must have sold his soul or something. He's almost like a ghost."

"So… why is this on TV? It doesn't sound like a public transmission."

"…Is your mind blonde as well?" the man rolled his eyes. "I bought it! Live, right now."

Frowning, Bianca threw him a furious look. "Well, bloody hell, forget I opened my mouth to ask!"

Turning towards her, the Snake watched her with murderous eyes, glossy from the alcohol constantly in his veins. "Don't forget that you had one job. One! And you fucked up! I lost two men this morning to the Police because of you. Don't you dare raise your voice at me, woman!" he hissed, breathing heavily like a psychopath about to eat her alive.

Frightened, the woman remained still on her seat. She had no idea of the costs of her failure… but was it really that bad? After all, she had killed her target. The moment she remembered it, all of the color on her face paled away. _'You will pay for me, just like V. paid for Anastasia…'_ Diego's words had been echoing in her mind day and night. _'You will pay…'_

Standing up all of a sudden, Bianca looked around in confusion. Where could she go? What could she do to get away? After a moment, she leaned against the man's desk. She was chewing the inside of her cheeks to blood, feeling her heart trembling in anticipation.

The Snake looked at her with precaution. "What are you doing?"

"…You said you lost two men, right?" she mumbled.

"Exactly. So what? Are you going to call a priest and turn them into martyrs?"

Frowning even more, the woman kept looking down. "How?"

"Arrested. Heavens! I said that before. Are you deaf or something?" The Snake poured himself another glass.

"Are you certain it was the police?"

After a moment of thought and a sip from his drink, the man began to consider the idea. "What are you insinuating?"

"…Nothing, I just think you just might have underestimated the Dragon. Before you call me a dumb blonde again, let me finish," the woman continued before the Snake could interrupt her. "You said it yourself – the syringe had been burned to ashes. You destroyed the surveillance footage, bought the cab driver, the hospital director was already on your side from the beginning and so were the security guards on duty that night. What could have led the police here? It doesn't make sense to me. Not except if it wasn't the real police, but the men of the Dragon – in which case, you should take care he doesn't buy or torture the two until he finds out something."

With a smirk, the Snake drank a mouthful of his liquor. "…You're not a dumb blonde, you are a pathetic, scared, stupid little blonde. Are you scared the Dragon will find out about you? So what if he does?! So far, you're nothing but a burden! You keep whining and whining like the little British bitch you are. I'm sorry, princess – this isn't Buckingham Palace. If you want me to care about your worthless life, you better come over here and get on your knees! …You're useless in any other way."

Enraged, the blonde picked up the gun on his desk and pointed it towards his head. With a trembling hand, she made sure her aim was accurate and moved her finger over the trigger. "Shut up! …Shut the fuck up! I'm not your whore, you…!"

Glad to see her react that way, the Snake grinned. "Say it!"

"You… disgusting piece of shit! You're disgusting! Uglier than the devil! You make me nauseous!" Tears threatening to spill any moment were clouding her vision. "I can't believe I pitied you, y-you monster!" Bianca held the gun with her both hands, both trembling too much for her to take aim.

Still, the man was smirking. He stood up on one leg and opened his arms. "Come on, pull the trigger. Do it! Kill me. You are nothing without me, lemon pie. Nothing! But you are always free to try."

Lowering her gun, the blonde looked at him carefully. "…Free? Will you let me leave?"

"Sure I will. How do you imagine me limping after you?" the Snake grinned, leaning on the arm of the couch and taking a jumped step towards her.

"But y-you… You say I am a burden. Why didn't you just let me die?!" Bianca cried out, holding back up her gun and pressing it against the Snake's forehead.

Slapping the gun from her hands, the Snake grabbed her both wrists and threw her against the wall behind them. "Because I thought you might have some gratitude to show! Now make yourself useful and bring me my lunch!" the man growled. "…Disrespect me once more and you will wish I had left you to die," he grumbled as he limped back on the couch and let himself fall between the pillows.

Holding back her tears and feeling her anger spinning into a ball in her throat, the woman stood up without another word and went to talk to the cook. It was stupid… So stupid, she couldn't believe she actually did it. Threatening the Snake could have meant suicide.

Caterina was just getting a taste of the same feeling as she was pacing the room, sitting on her bed upside-down and admiring her nails and bracelets. She kept looking at the clock, waiting for Shin to give her a sign. Had he met with the devil's minion yet? Was he even going to live long enough to tell her the details?

Sighing, Caterina sat down and called the only person in the world she knew could make the time pass faster. The girl was watching the city lights from her favorite leather armchair – identical to the one she had at the first hotel where she lived in Japan.

 _'_ _Yes…?'_ Light purred through the speaker.

"What's up and isn't in your pants?" the girl asked on a plain voice.

 _'My hope you wouldn't be in such a mood. Who do you want me to lay to sleep for you?'_

Caterina rolled her eyes. "Listen. Can you come over? I've done something and it might have been a mistake."

 _'…_ _How bad can it possibly be?'_ Kira asked after a moment of thought.

"You know I don't know any gray and you know the situations I usually live through." Although she didn't want to admit it, the girl was afraid. The thought of Shin turning his back on her for a better offer was terrifying and so were the other possibilities. It might have felt good to finally do something on her own, but at the same time she was afraid of the consequences. Shin was a poor card to bet on.

"I will be there in half," Light assured her before hanging up. Before she called, he was just explaining Ryuk his brilliant strategy in hiding the Death Note – in case anyone found it, the Note would be destroyed before his secret would be spoiled.

 _'_ _What was that all about?'_ Ryuk asked as Light was looking up online a few phone numbers of taxi companies.

"What do you mean?" he returned the question.

 _'I don't think that was a very appropriate talk. And what was she saying about that mistake?'_

"We sometimes talk that way," Kira shrugged. "Caterina has a very simple view of the world, much like my own. There is good and evil, there is life and death, there is power and weakness – this is what she meant by _'no gray'_. Now, this is only a theory, but I believe her mistake is related to Shin or rather, to trusting him with a life-threatening move."

The shinigami was thrilled. Not only were the two in a complicated relationship – now, the girl was getting herself in a risky situation, which could affect Light as well. This was sure getting more interesting by the hour.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Hi! No, I'm not dead yet and yes, the story is still ongoing. As usual, the chapter had been proofread by my faithful beta reader, **AbandonedSock.**_

 _Sadly, Misa won't show up for a little while, but I am planning her next scene. Also, let's keep in mind that Bianca deserves her moment of fame and trouble and right now, she's rather vulnerable. Honestly, I am still sad over Diego's passing and I don't like the way he went down, but hopefully he will be remembered._


	32. XXXI - Clash

_XXXI – Clash_

* * *

The cab stopped in front of the hotel and Light paid for his ride. When he took off, the man drove a few meters away and called someone. "I found the hotel. What do you want me to do now?"

 _'Return. You will find a blonde at one of the tables in the back wearing a transparent black shirt. Tell her the location.'_

"What about my wife?" the driver asked, as calm as he possibly could.

 _'First, the location. She is on the train, still alive. I haven't used the gas yet, but perhaps it might leak enough to kill the weak and sick… Who knows?'_ the voice laughed through the speaker from the other end of the line. _'Perhaps your wife will breathe easy.'_

Growling, the cab driver cursed the other in his mind. "Ten minutes, or I could say it right now."

 _'Ah, impatient, aren't we…? But I'm afraid you are not the one setting the rules. Five minutes, or the gas will start leaking.'_ After that, the other hung up and left the driver to work his way through the crowded city.

Just then, Light took the elevator to the top floor. Caterina was waiting at the door, her arms crossed over her chest. The bodyguards were watching him like unanimated statues.

"Finally. What took you so long?" the girl asked, stepping aside to welcome him.

"Busy streets. What is all this about?" All this time, Ryuk was looking around, grinning to himself and passing through walls. After the shinigami had toured the apartment, he returned besides Light.

Sighing, Caterina threw herself on her armchair. "Were you followed?"

"No," he quickly answered her. "Why so paranoid? What have you done?"

The girl looked at him, obviously against his accusing tone, but decided it was only a stress reaction. "I bet everything on Shin. I sent him with a really good offer to meet with whoever made him the first offer, talk the details, pretend he goes along and return to me."

"So…?" Light asked, taking a seat across from her and shamelessly leaning into the armchair he always saw her father occupied. "If you made him such a good offer, he should be a safe bet."

"Should," she repeated. "He's a coward. I haven't thought about it before, but I saw him when he talked to my father. If someone threatens him, he will lose his head… Literally or figuratively, neither is to my advantage."

At the corner of his eye, Light saw Ryuk going outside through the glass wall and flying off somewhere. It worried him, but he couldn't let that show. "How do we know of his progress?"

"That's the biggest problem," Caterina mumbled. "We don't."

It wasn't even that dark yet, but Light felt his darker side taking over in a more powerful way than usual. The situation was too dangerous for the two sides of him to allow his weaker self to handle it. Unfortunately though, that was exactly what was about to happen to Shin.

With his heart trembling in anticipation and fear, the teenager finally saw a hooded man approaching him just as the sun was going down. He was slender, in jeans and a loose shirt, a cigarette in his mouth. Shin saw the other's hands were yellowish with swollen, blue veins, and bruises around the knuckles.

"So, are you in?" the stranger asked as soon as he reached him.

Nervous, Shin nodded. "I don't want to do this… but I need the money. You said she will be fine, right? It's just a talk."

"Yeah," came the short answer.

"So…?" Shin asked, uncertain.

"You see, my boss has a way of getting what he wants. Do you know these two?" The stranger showed Shin a picture of two small children sharing the same wavy black hair, tied up on two chairs and with a cloth covering their eyes. They looked bruised and with a few scratches, but otherwise fine. However, it was enough to stop their brother's breath.

Shin grabbed the other by the collar. "Where are they?!"

Grinning, the stranger loaded his gun and pointed it towards Shin's stomach. "Easy now, I'm only the messenger. So, are you in?"

Backing away, Shin held up his hands. His sky was falling down, but he had to keep calm. "…If anyone touches them again, I swear…!"

"Look," the skinny man began, "I'm not supposed to say this, but my boss is a reasonable man. Give him what he wants and nobody dies. That's a good second offer – take my word for it. Others kill for less."

Ryuk didn't need much to see someone with the name 'Shin' above his head looking quite troubled and about to make a dangerous decision. The numbers showing his lifespan were changing as he was making up his mind. The death god grinned, feeling a rush of excitement as he followed him and the other one into a tiny, dark, smoky bar that seemed to be a lot larger in the back. The boys sat at the table of a woman who had come all the way from Europe – it was obvious by her name and face.

"This is the kid," the hooded one spoke, taking off his hood. Ryuk read his name and his lifespan. He was growing impatient to see how he will be spending his last moments.

"Do you know what you have to do?" Bianca asked him, looking bored and feeling more than a little careless. Now certain the Snake didn't value her life and with her illusions exposed, the woman decided to dedicate herself to avenging her uncle. If that meant manipulating teenagers, she couldn't care less. Anything went, as long as it helped her take another step towards her final goal.

"Bring her here," Shin answered quietly. He was terrified of what might happen to his little brothers. All the years spent working his hands to the bone meant nothing without the twins and all of his sacrifices were about to blow up in smoke. "What else?"

"I ask the questions. Sit down." As soon as Bianca finished, the boy took a seat across the table. "I want you to text the girl right now. If she doesn't reply right away, call her. Ask her out and invent some reason so she won't be able to refuse."

A couple of seconds later, Caterina saw her phone light up. Unlocking it, she froze.

"…What is it?" Light asked.

"Shin. He wants us to meet."

Kira frowned. Since when does that loser have her number? But perhaps it was a necessity at the time. "Does he say where or when?"

"Yes. It's an address in the bad quarter. He says I can take a cab and he will pay for it, that he's had a terrible day and he wants a shoulder and stuff like that."

Light took her phone from her and read the long message. This was obviously a set up. Strangely enough though, there was the number 7 apparently misspelled at the end of the text. "…If you read every seventh word, it says _'leave now will blow'_ … Caterina, where is your father?" he asked as soon as he figured it out.

"What?! But I don't know that!" Looking around for a moment, the girl tried to come up with a plan. It was already 10 p.m.

"Reply," Light told her. "You wanted this, so here – play along."

Caterina looked at him for a moment, then typed a positive reply. "Done. Now what?"

"…Aren't you the devil's little princess?" Kira grinned. "He will save you, no matter what, so now we go to that address and find Shin and his venomous friend."

Glaring at him and about to slap him for his sudden and uncalled for dose of cruelty, Caterina held back her anger and ran to get the money she kept in her room for emergencies. In less than a minute, they were both running out of the hotel as the bodyguards were watching them silently. Some were suspicious, but they had been given strict orders to remain there no matter what.

Caterina saw a cab already waiting in front of the hotel and Light's eyes went wide. "He brought me here," he mumbled as they ran towards the car.

"And you're telling me this now?" she asked under her breath just before opening the door and hopping in. The girl was about to take out her phone and announce her father when someone from the passenger seat pointed a gun at her.

"Set that little toy down, princess," the man grinned. Immediately, Caterina turned pale. She recognized him as flashes returned to her mind of the burning motel, of her threatened in a foreign car, of how she kneeled one of her kidnappers and jumped out of the car in the middle of a highway. Slowly, the girl set her phone beside her. "Down, on the floor," the man specified and she complied, setting her phone on the rubber rug at her feet.

Light hesitated for a moment, but fled right before the cab left in a rush. If he wanted to become the god of a new world, he couldn't afford risking his own life. Instead, he ran straight to the police station with the car plate number and the address in mind.

The Snake was watching through the cameras how Bianca handled the situation. She had talked to the cab driver a couple of minutes before and sent one other man with him. Now, she was talking to the trembling, pale teenager. His blonde looked colder than ever, her green eyes empty of any hint of emotion. Perhaps she wasn't as useless as he first thought…

At the station, Kira found most of the officers and agents were off duty, so he rushed into his father's office. Thankfully, his father was still there. The police chief was trying to anticipate L's proof for claiming Kira was in Japan. As soon as he heard the door, the man closed the files and looked up.

"Light?! What happened?" It was clear enough by his fast breathing and red eyes that something was seriously wrong.

"…Remember I said Caterina feared she was in danger? It's happening. The hotel, it blew up. She's held captive. I know the address, the plate number… A taxi picked her up. She got a text. I don't know where her father is. You have to send a team there right now. It's in that quarter – I bet it's a big fish." His young mind was ravished by a thousand thoughts shared by his sides as they were contradicting each other over what he should say first.

Frightened to see his calm and composed child acting that way, the man stood up immediately. "Alright. Take a seat, calm down. I'll send a team right away!"

"Her dad… I've got to tell him!" Light protested as his father pushed him from his shoulders towards a chair. "I have to contact him. It will get ugly if we don't inform him right now."

Nodding, the man sat his son down. "Fine, but first I'll send the team. Try to calm down now and we will talk later."

In the mean time, the Dragon was just making his way out through the flames. His best men were all waiting in the parking lot – about ten tall, bulky gorillas all dressed in black and with their faces covered. He left the coat of his suit behind, disgusted by the ashes covering it and slowly burning holes into the fabric. If his girl was still alive and well, he couldn't tell for certain. The only thing that he could tell was that he was more than glad to accept the war declaration of the Snake, even more so when he dared to use his preferred method of assault.

Back at the bar, the Snake was watching the fireworks through a surveillance camera of a restaurant across the street. He was grinning widely, leaning back into his armchair. "Yes… I'm glad you didn't burn like a rat – I'd much rather skin you alive and watch you writhe!" He wanted to join the action, but was aware that was too risky while in his situation. A lifetime of watching the action developing on a TV screen instead of living it first-hand was the price he had to pay for his past mistakes.

Bianca was waiting, already tired of chatting with the cowardly teenager. "You can imagine I am not the one behind this, but you annoy me and nobody said I should keep you alive," the blonde glared at him.

When Caterina was escorted in the back, she saw Shin all pale and shaking, his eyes red and his lips thinner than usual. He looked ten years older, terrified of even breathing the wrong way. He had Bianca's gun pressed to his temple and he was silently begging Caterina to get him out.

The kidnapper had tied the girl's hands together and was dragging her along using the rope as a leash. "What's that, Liz?" he grinned, stealing the nickname their superior sometimes used.

"He annoys me. Was that necessary?" the blonde asked about Caterina. "And where is the other one?"

"He got away. We will find him, don't worry," the man said as he sat Caterina on a chair. "What now, boss? Is she mine yet, or do you want her first?" he asked aloud, looking at the camera in the corner and grinning proudly.

 _'Idiot! Find her boyfriend before he calls the police on us, you retard! Do I have to tell you every single time? Clean up your own mess before I clean out your worthless life!'_ the Snake hissed through the speakers.

Making a face of pure disappointment and disgust, the man dragged his feet out. "Right… Try to keep the princess awake 'til I'm back. She's got a favor to pay me."

Grinning, Caterina made up her mind to go down in a memorable way. If that was it, she didn't want to die like some scared damsel in distress. "Don't take too long, baby. I just might go up in flames," she called after her kidnapper.

"What was that?" he turned back, surprised by the girl's sudden change of attitude.

"Can anyone bring me a drink? I can't do this when I'm sober. Will you bring me something?" she asked the man on a pleading tone, fluttering her eyelids and smiling widely.

 _'Do your fucking job!'_ the Snake yelled.

"…Fine, fine, I'm going. Do you want the boy alive, boss?" the man asked from the doorway.

"Excuse me? I want his heart," Caterina said, making her kidnapper smirk back in return.

All this time, Shin had been too scared to say anything. He was terrified, watching Caterina act in a rather confusing way. He was wondering if the girl was under the influence of some substances because from his perspective, the game she played was much too dangerous for anyone sane and awake to accept.

Ryuk had been watching the scene and after he was done laughing, he eventually decided to return and talk to Light. The shinigami found him before the assassin sent to shut him up, sitting in his father's office with his head in his hands and sighing heavily.

"…Where have you been?" he asked Ryuk as soon as the entity entered the room.

 _'Out. It took me a while to find you. Why are you here?'_

Leaning with his elbows over his knees, Light looked up. "I know you know something. I think it's time you start talking, Ryuk."

 _'Me…? Maybe,'_ the death god grinned. _'What do I get if I do?'_

Frowning, Light remembered what the creature loved most. "One apple for every useful piece of information."

 _'Not enough, I'm afraid.'_

"Two, then. Will that do? If not, I will stop feeding you any apples for two months."

When Ryuk heard Kira talking, it immediately agreed. _'Two is fine. Two apples for every answer.'_

"Then start talking," Kira ordered him in a low voice. Immediately, he stood up and looked through the files of his father. Light hoped the Dragon had the same phone number from a couple of months ago as he sent a text to meet up in ten minutes.

When the man got it, he was surprised. He knew the number from Caterina. At first he wanted to ignore it, but then he thought the boy was rather smart for his age. Inexperienced, of course, but not an idiot. In hope Light would offer him some information, the Dragon drove to the meeting place and called back.

 _'Yes, sir?'_ Light answered as soon as his phone rang.

"Two minutes. You better be there," the man ordered him and was rather pleased with the response.

 _'I am right around the corner, sir. It will take me a few seconds.'_

The Dragon hung up and drove faster. He had already tried to contact his little girl, but her not picking up was never a good sign. He knew she was most likely alive, but was too horrified to think of all the things she could possibly experience that would be worse than death. As soon as he reached the place, he stopped the car enough so Light could get in, then drove towards the notorious quarter.

"Good evening, sir. I apologize we had to meet like this," Light said as Ryuk was following them.

"Where is she?" the man asked. There were three other men in the car, all of which Light assumed to be bodyguards, or paid fighters, or both.

"Here," Light said as he handled a piece of paper to the Dragon. To his greatest mistake, it wasn't the paper he would have expected.

Once the man saw the creature grinning in his rearview mirror, his eyes went wide and he nearly crashed into a truck, avoiding the impact at the last minute. "…What in the name of the devil is that hideous thing?!"

Ryuk grinned, pointing a long, slender claw towards himself. _'Can you see me?'_

The very same moment, Light's eyes went wide as he understood his mistake. His mind called out for the god he had decided to distrust. "…Sir? Could you please just ignore it?" he asked in a low voice. "I promise to explain, but now Caterina is our greater priority."

Frowning, the man nodded. "…Perhaps my God has had enough of constantly forgiving me. If he had sent the Devil for me, I refuse to go before I see my daughter safe." Taking back his power of concentration, he rushed to the bar of the Snake. He had no time to waste, the teenager was right about that.

Kira took off the moment the car engine stopped. Nobody could really complain about the parking skills of the Dragon, who had pushed a few cars and about ten bodyguards out of his way.

"Orders, Master," one of his three loyal men asked right as the other two were breaking the door open for their employer.

"You three come with me. Do not engage in anything unnecessary. Kill if you need to kill, but do not waste any time. Once inside, my daughter is your priority. Protecting me or anyone else is secondary. Was that clear enough?" the man asked as he led the others down a tight flight of stairs and corridors, following the trace of caged dancers, drunk or drugged youths and the booming vibration of the audio system, blasting something the Dragon had never even imagined people could call music. "If you wish to take anything, you are free to do so on your own account."

Kira looked at Ryuk. "Where are they keeping Caterina?" Needless to say, the Dragon wanted to see the demonic ghost do its thing since it seemed to be on their side, for now.

The Shinigami looked around before pointing to a direction. _'There, in the back. Cross the room and to the right.'_

Two of the bodyguards looked at each other strangely, wondering who were their employer and that teenager talking to. They couldn't see anyone in that direction… and that was no surprise. The two had been talking to a lamp on the ceiling from their perspective.

"Hurry up," their leader groaned, pushing his two subordinates forward. Unfortunately though, the crowd was so dense, the five of them were having trouble crossing through. Already annoyed by his not very experienced men, the leader of the three fired a few bullets into the speakers. "Alright, everyone – listen up! Move your asses to the side and nobody dies. If I were you, I'd get the hell out of here in a nice, organized way! So make pairs of two and move towards the exit, if you value what's left of your wasted lives!"

For a few seconds, the crowd went silent. After a while though, a girl began laughing and another few followed. "I'll make a pair with you, big boy!"

Light was looking around in disgust. He had been expecting something alike to what he had seen over a year before when he had met with Caterina and her family at a similar bar. It appeared nighttime was completely different from daytime in the underground.

Annoyed by the shinigami laughing in a mocking way and by the oblivious crowd, the Dragon signed for his bodyguards to free him a corridor. The two began pushing people to one side or the other, shoving them like cattle and shooting anyone who opposed. The third bodyguard was loading his gun, walking close behind Light and the Dragon.

 _'Well, well, look who's here… Prince charming and the old king decided to join the party!'_ the Snake laughed through the speakers left still functioning as the five were making their way down the corridor leading to where Bianca was.

"If you have as much as touched her, I will feed you your lungs and turn you inside-out with my bare hands," the Dragon growled, well aware that his former protégé had microphones hidden everywhere. Kira was at least surprised to hear of such ideas, though it made him wonder if the Death Note was capable of making someone torture themselves that way before dying.

 _'Then please, be my guest!'_ the Snake laughed again as the floor gave in right underneath the two newer bodyguards. The men fell into a pool of venomous snakes.

"Boss?!" one of them cried. "Master?! S-Sir! Y-y-you won't leave us here, r-right? Right?!"

The other one was losing his mind completely. "Please, get me out of here! I'll do _anything_ , I'll be a slave, I'll sell my life! I don't wanna die! I don't want-!"

Frowning, their leader looked at his employer. With the Dragon turning his back, the man shot dead his two subordinates, along with a few reptiles crawling out of the hole.

 _'Left,'_ Ryuk said when the tunnel split. 'I want more apples for this, Light.'

"Apples? Is it possible to buy the loyalty of an imp with apples?" the man asked as his only bodyguard left looked at him like he was nuts.

"It appears this way, sir, though I would much rather see Caterina and I out and alive before bribing the devil," Kira grinned in return.

 _'Light?'_ Ryuk began. _'Tell him he can stop calling me a demon anytime. My name is Ryuk and I am getting tired of his appellatives.'_

A team of ten armed men were waiting for the Dragon and his company. Light took a step back and watched while the Dragon rolled up the sleeves of his shirt and the only remaining bodyguard threw off his suit coat. What Kira saw next made him reconsider getting rid of the Dragon – he bare-handedly took out four of their enemies without any lethal injuries. Both Caterina's father and the man he had paid for this sort of jobs had used their limbs and then the bodies of their opponents to shield their vital points. Light was observing their strategy – it was brilliant!

All this time, Bianca began fearing for her life. She could hear the Snake's men being slaughtered outside the door, but she trusted the Snake to get her out of there. She had done everything right – he had no reason to be mad at her anymore. The blonde was frowning, her palms sweating and her eyes holding back frightened tears. All that she could hear were Diego's last words and Caterina singing her threats with pride.

"Go, daddy, go! I want a snake leather purse, can I have it? Pretty, pretty please~" the girl whined, pulling and twisting her wrists in hope of freeing herself from the ropes. "Padre! They hurt me! Tied me up like an animal! Can I pay them back before you're done? Daddy, please!"

Already angered, Bianca slapped the girl's face as hard as she could, scratching her cheek with her ring. "Will you shut the hell up?!" Turning towards the camera, the woman waited for the Snake to do something. "You better get me out of here! Don't you _dare_ leave me for dead! Do you hear me?"

Caterina laughed. "Oh, I bet he does! He will leave you behind, like every other little whore of his. You've been used, darling – _surprise_! My, how unexpected!"

Shin, trying to find his courage to make a move, was just spotting an opportunity. "Perhaps Caterina is right. She seems to know the rules of this game, but even from my perspective it seems-!"

"I didn't ask any of you, spoiled brats!" Bianca spat out, pacing the room from one end to the other. "Snake! Say something, god damn it!"

 _'And what would you want me to say, Elizabeth?'_ the criminal asked her through the speakers. The woman could hear him grinning from the tone of his voice.

"Elizabeth? Is that your name, or the name he gave you? Most whores use a fake name," Caterina chuckled. "Say, did you kill my dear Diego? Was it you, the mysterious ' _Amateur Assassin_ '?"

"She murdered someone?!" Shin cried in despair.

"Get me the hell out of here!" the blonde yelled towards the camera just as the door was being busted down.

 _'Then you better hold your breath, Lizzy!'_ the Snake laughed just as the door gave in and fell to the ground. From all corners of the room a thick, white smoke was being pumped into the tight, closed space at a great speed. Although he could no longer see what was happening through the cameras, the man was pleased. Really, he was thrilled! He had finally caught the Dragon in a trap, with his dear daughter and the girl's son-of-a-cop boyfriend sharing his grave.

"…Go see if she's alive," he eventually mumbled towards one of his men. He immediately put on a gas mask and went in a hurry to see if the British woman was still hanging in there. The smoke was very poisonous, or so he had been warned.

Outside the Green Snake bar, the owner was waiting in the back of his car. The passenger seat was occupied by a professional assassin. They were all waiting to see if the one sent back into the underground was going to return when the sirens of the police made themselves heard from a few streets away.

"Get off," the Snake ordered his assassin. "If she's alive, bring her to me. Bring me all of my men who got out alive. Don't get arrested, if I have to tell you that," the man ordered right before patting the shoulder of his driver.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _As usual, this chapter has been proofread by **AbandonedSock -** this time in record time! _

_Oh, what a busy day! I've also published the first chapter of a story written in collaboration with another author for the **D. Gray-Man** fandom. You can find a summary and the direct link on my profile~ I'msoexcitedaboutthis! _

_Also, here is your one time only offer! You now have the chance to play the Grimm Ripper and choose if you wish to kill or to spare one of the characters. I'll give you a spoiler that you can't kill Light (obviously, lucky bastard is the main character) or the Dragon. Who you can kill (or spare) could be Caterina, Shin, Bianca, or the Dragon's bodyguard... or Shin's younger brothers._

 _Always glad to see you are still around, **Jupiter's Bull.** It is challenging to follow the timeline now that there are more than... 3 events a year? Haha. But we're still accurate. All this happens on Dec 4th and the confrontation between Kira and L happens on Dec. 5th, so it is still possible. It will be on the next chapter. _


	33. XXXII - Borrowed Time

_XXXII –Borrowed Time_

* * *

There was a very fine line he was walking on at the moment. Namikawa Reiji had been contacted by an anonymous investor willing to bribe him in order to receive confidential information on the owner of the Yotsuba Group. However, only minutes before he had received the offer, the young man had spoken to his father who had told him the Dragon was impossible to contact.

 _'…This is our last offer. My boss wants an answer now,'_ the man at the other end of the line insisted.

"Yes, I have had no trouble comprehending the situation before and let me assure you, that aspect remained unchanged. Unfortunately, your memory seems to be failing you, sir. For the last time, I have asked you to give me this superior of yours on the phone."

Sighing, the one making the offer covered the microphone and spoke to someone briefly. Reiji waited patiently for the other to comply.

 _'Good evening, young prince,'_ a different voice spoke into the phone in a rather annoyed and disrespectful tone.

"I will assume you are the superior of the previous one," the man checked.

 _'Congrats – well guessed. Do you want a prize for that?'_

"A trophy would be difficult to refuse, thank you." Annoyed, Namikawa made up his mind on the spot. "I was hoping this mysterious investor willing to so generously celebrate our secret alliance would be more of a cultivated, respectable man. Unfortunately, if I was tempted to shake hands with the devil before, I can see now you are nothing but an accidentally rich… _thug_ , I think is the word?"

At the other end of the line, Reiji could hear the man breathing deeply and trying to control his anger. _'You dare disrespect me?! Don't you know I can crush you like a cockroach?!'_

"Sir, with or without your permission, this talk will be over in a moment. Now, please allow me to simplify my answer to your level of understanding – if you dare bother me once more, I won't be so kind. Just because it is not my style does not necessarily mean I am defenseless. Simply put, I refuse your offer." Not waiting for an answer, Reiji hang up and turned his phone over, removing the battery and the SIM card underneath. Instead of destroying it, he transferred it into another phone connected to a computer that the Dragon had gifted him several days before. Through the software installed on that computer, he will be capable of tracking down whoever called him again.

To Namikawa, there were two believable scenarios. In the first case, the Dragon was wounded and hiding for a short period of time before making an extraordinary comeback and reclaiming everything he owned and more. In the second case, the Dragon was dead, which left him the opportunity to take over with the help of his father. Regardless, the final result would still be to his advantage if he turned down the offer. Even if the Dragon was alive, he was well known for the gratitude he showed to those who stayed loyal to him, especially when temped by outsiders. Namikawa couldn't dream of a better chance to ask for a reward.

However, what he did not consider was the third scenario. On the night of fourth to fifth of December, when the police broke into the Green Snake bar, they were surprised to only recover three people alive. In a really bad shape, unconscious and with a dangerous level of toxins in his blood, the son of the police chief had been rushed to the hospital around one in the morning.

Besides Light, the officers had found the body of another teenager, later identified as a school mate of Light. On the corridor, ten bodyguards laid dead – most with broken necks or heads, while some had only been knocked unconscious and had died because of the poisonous gas that had filled the underground level of the building.

The snakes found roaming the building were caught, identified and transferred to the zoo. All of them were beautiful, venomous exemplars. A couple were rare, but most were rather common. The Police had also found an entire laboratory used to extract and refine snake venom with samples labeled and arranged on categories like in a pharmacy.

'The police have found two children, twins, aged between six and seven years old. The boys are in a critical condition with signs of abuse and suffering from poisoning with a unknown cocktail of snake venom. At the time, this is all the information we have. We will be waiting on an update on the victims from the hospital at 1 p.m., when a press conference is scheduled,' the news anchor announced, visibly moved by the news she had to present.

Sighing, the King leaned closer to his pillow and curled an arm underneath it. Perhaps it was about time he stopped waiting for the Dragon to bail him out and made his own escape. The man had managed to buy a phone with three packs of cigarettes and some stories about the legend of the Dragon.

"…Still on my side?" the King mumbled through the phone, pretending to be scratching his upper lip.

 _'How can I pay you back?'_ a young voice full of gratitude spoke back.

"Go tell your old man that if he gets me out, that is the only favor I will ask of him. No more debts. Clean."

 _'Will do, sir!'_ The teenager hung up and ran to his father. The man had a small stand at the fish market, selling his own catch and exploiting his son whenever he couldn't afford to pay the workers. The child didn't mind though, not as long as he was left with enough time to study.

About three years ago, the child had made friends with the man searching his father's pockets for the last coin and still asking for more every time. _'You're a smart kid,'_ the man told him after a few minutes, _'I'll make sure you get to do something one day that doesn't stink.'_ Although said as a joke, the child began to receive money every semester that he had used to sign up for school and pay for it. The boy's father found out when it was already too late to walk out of the deal.

"Hey, dad?" the boy asked, waiting for his father to take the money from a client and pay attention to him. "That man called, the one in a red suit."

"He's in jail! What does he want with us now?!" the man groaned, counting the money he had made that day.

"Yeah… Well, he wants out. I think I can come up with a plan, but I will need your boat." The boy already had the keys to his father second-hand boat in his pocket, well prepared for a refusal.

"Don't you dare! You wanted to go to school?! That's fine, as long as I'm not paying for it! But don't you dare help out a criminal like him!" When he was done counting, the man put the money in a zipped pocket, mentally adding the sum up to what he had saved in the past few months. "…Ever since that pirate went to jail, we finally have enough to manage on our own. We're better off without-… Yao?! YAO!"

The child was waving from the boat, starting the engine. "Take care, father! …If all goes well, I don't think I'm coming back," Yao mumbled to himself, sailing towards the canal from which he will have access underneath the prison. The thirteen-years-old was putting all of his hope in the King's mercy and would gladly throw away a life of disrespect, poverty and hard work for a few kind words and the promise of being supported to finish his school.

On the other hand, the King had been putting his hope into the Dragon's hands for years, and there was no better time to pay him back for all of the support he had received from him.

It was still December the fifth when the Dragon woke up without the skin on his left hand and forearm. "Good morning!" the Snake greeted him with an air of superiority. He was sitting on an armchair a couple meters away from the Dragon, dressed up in his trade-mark green suit with a shiny new tie mimicking the scales of a reptile. "How was your beauty sleep? Hm? Did you rest well? Knowing you, it may very well be the first time you've allowed yourself the luxury of falling unconscious since the motel attempt." Making a gesture with his hand, the Snake ordered another to cover the Dragon's skinned arm in salt.

Cringing and groaning in pain, the man tried to keep awake and figure out his surroundings. His mind was confused, worried by one thing only. "Where is she?"

"Still asleep, I'm afraid. I've got someone trying to wake her, so don't worry. You will hear her when she does," the Snake assured him with a smirk. "Now, let's move onto the serious things. First, who is this asshole of yours, Namikawa Reiji?"

This time, it was the Dragon's turn to grin. "You can't buy my men anymore. They know it is in their best interest to stay on my side and unlike you, they are intelligent enough to take over any moment."

"Wrong answer," the Snake yawned as the torturer went and cut open the skin on the Dragon's back and pulled it off, exposing his muscles. "It's time for the Dragon to extend his wings!"

A few moments later, Bianca walked down a few stairs. "I think you should see what's on TV. It's that guy…" the blonde said and with a sigh, the Snake picked up his crutches.

"Have fun," he told the torturer. "I want him alive and conscious," he mentioned right before following Bianca upstairs. "I will assume it is important," he warned her.

"Seems so. Look! He's showing his face and daring Kira," the blonde pointed out. On the screen, there was a young man with long, dark hair and an artificially calm expression speaking.

 _'...Criminals around the world are being murdered by a serial killer. I consider this crime to be the most atrocious act of murder in history. I will not rest until the person or persons responsible are brought to justice. Kira, I will hunt you down. I will find you. Kira, I've got a pretty good idea what your motivation might be and I can guess what you hope to achieve. However, what you're doing right now is evil.'_

The Snake sat on a couch. It was more comfortable than a chair and he wouldn't have to worry about falling over if he threw himself on it too hard. Patiently, he was waiting for the man to continue. "…That's just stupid. Why the hell would he hide his face for years, only to come out now and make a direct threat? I'm not buying it."

"Do you think it could be a trap?" Bianca asked, standing with her arms crossed over her chest. She was still dizzy, but could manage to keep her balance for a few minutes. "Maybe that's not even L, but a bait of some sort."

The Snake nodded. "…That's actually a pretty good guess. But why isn't Kira making any move? I think this Kira is either really smart, or not watching the news… which is unusual for him or them."

Bianca sat down by his side, wrapping an arm around the man's scarred shoulders. "Or maybe he's dead."

Raising an eyebrow, the man turned to look at her. "What do you mean, dead? Who killed him?"

The woman smirked weakly and shrugged. "I don't know… Maybe it was that kid, the chief's son. I mean, he probably grew up hating criminals, right? His dad is a cop, he must have. Then, he met Caterina, got close to the Dragon, and received some power to rid the world of his possible competitors. Kira took out many of the Dragon's men that fell in disgrace, one way or another."

The Snake pushed her away. "And you expect him to give such power to a kid?! No shit!"

"Yeah!" the woman insisted. "Think about it – it's perfect. No one would suspect him! And if he's dead, of course nobody is going to take the challenge and kill this Lind L. Tailor, right?"

"Are you drunk or what? I _know_ him," the man pointed towards the basement, "Okay? I know him well - that's why I caught him! I know his way of thinking, his weaknesses, his patterns, his every breath! The Dragon would never trust a kid like him, especially not a cop's son. Why would he? Because his girl slept with him or something? Girls like her change boyfriends every week or sooner. It means nothing!"

Sighing, Bianca rolled her eyes. "Maybe… but then why isn't anyone taking the challenge? Come on, the guy would do anything to spoil his little girl. You have to admit, he would."

The Snake stood up. "Has she woken up yet?"

Bianca shook her head. "No, but her pulse is normal and her breath even. She should be awake by now."

The man nodded, taking his crutches. "When she does, bring her down." A grin was twisting his scarred face as the man began thinking aloud. "After all these years, I will end him… Physically, he's strong, even at this age. His mind is weak, though – it's always been! It will be enough to show him his little girl in chains to break him once and for all."

Bianca nodded and went to check on the auburn-haired girl. She had been hanging from her hands for so long, her fingers were turning a shade of dark purple, swelling and twitching involuntary every now and then. The blond slapped her, but the girl didn't react. She took a lighter and kept the flame close to her arm until the skin began turning a dark red. Bianca even took a knife and pressed its dull edge between the girl's ribs. Still, she got no reaction. Frowning, the woman checked her vital signs again.

Down in the basement, the torturer was peeling strips of muscle tissue off the Dragon's back. The Snake had taken his seat, smoking a cigar and enjoying the look of pure hatred and pain on his former caretaker's face. "Liz had a strange idea earlier. She insinuated that you created Kira, is it true?"

The man was growling between his teeth. "What do you think?" the Dragon grinned, proud until the end. "You will never find out from me."

"Is that so…?" the Snake raised both his eyebrows. "Well, then I think you remember an old method of execution. I think the Chinese used it, right? Those disgusting Chinese… The reason you appeared into this world, too yellow for Europe but too white for Asia. You fucking half-breed… You will be cut into a million little pieces right in front of you precious Caterina. Don't you just love it? Because of you, she will suffer for years to come."

The Dragon lowered his head, looking all around him as the torturer was choosing his instruments. He had his wrists chained to opposite walls, keeping him in a crucifix position. His legs were free, but every move he tried to make hurt horribly because of his back. He knew that when he took off his shoes during the time when the Snake was upstairs. The man didn't even want to know how he must have looked. Instead, he reached out and kicked the table on which the torturer had his instruments and caught a hold of a knife between his toes. "If this is the end of the line for me, it won't be for her too!"

All this time, Caterina had been trying her best not to react to the various pains that Bianca had caused her. By breathing slowly for about an hour, she managed to slow down her heart beat as well. Just like she anticipated, Bianca got worried that she was dying and climbed up on a chair to untie her hands. Once she saw the opportunity, Caterina stood on her toes on the edge of the chair, wrapped the cable around Bianca's neck and jumped off, kicking the chair as well.

Falling on her butt, the auburn-haired girl crawled backwards. The view was terrifying. Caterina watched the woman for a few seconds, desperately trying to hold the cable away from her neck, but only wrapping it tighter. Her eyes went wide as she was gasping for air, trying to scream at the same time but only letting out a few coughs and incoherent sounds. Getting a chill down her spine, Caterina turned away and quickly ran out the door. She began looking for a weapon or a gun around the room that the Snake and his blond seemed to be using as a living area. Her hands were aching terribly, her arms and cheeks too, but the thought of being used for the rest of her life was terrifying enough to motivate her to keep searching.

Light was also searching for something, once he had been finally left alone to rest. It seemed two young nurses were especially careful he had everything he needed – they even asked if he was bored. Since when was that an important matter? If at first the teenager had been amused to see them so charmed by his smile, now they were getting on his nerves. L's transmission was just about to end when he eventually got out of bed and made his way to the chair turned into a temporary closet for his belongings.

 _'Feeling better already?'_ Ryuk grinned when he returned. He was chewing an apple that Light assumed he had stolen from somewhere.

"I can't talk to you," he mumbled in a low voice as he reached for the pages he had torn out of the Death Note.

 _'Why not? We're alone, what's the matter?'_ the shinigami asked again.

This time, Light refused to answer him. Instead, he sat on the bed to catch his breath. His head ached horribly and his heart rate was accelerating already. If he tried to make any effort, his lungs would sting like that one time in his first year of high school when he tried to smoke out of curiosity.

 _'That is all I had to say to you, Kira. If you have any sense of justice, you will follow my advice and surrender. If not, expect to be hunted down and brought to justice. Either way, such evil cannot be tolerated anymore,'_ L continued with his speech as Light took out a pen.

"Oh, no… Don't think I will ever surrender. Why would I? I am innocent. Even more, I am justice!" Kira mumbled from the edge of the bed. "Besides, without these…" he grinned towards the pages of the Death Note, "there won't be any evidence to convict me, which means that catching me will be absolutely impossible! But just for showing the world what happens when you cross me…" Kira wrote the name down on half of the page in front of him, using the night stand as a table. Soon after, he looked at the clock on the wall, counting down the seconds.

Caterina had heard the talk coming from behind a door. It wasn't closed entirely and she could see through the opening that it lead somewhere downstairs. Her father's words sent chills running down her spine as she looked around the room for a weapon of any kind. The teenager was determined to get her father out of there, even if the voice of reason was begging her to leave and trust the man with his own life.

All this time, Kira was watching the tongue of the clock. Only twenty seconds left.

The auburn-haired girl could hear her father groaning in pain and something liquid splashing on the floor. Making up her mind, she took the third door and prayed that she won't run into any guards or friends of the Snake.

Grinning, Kira kept looking from the clock to the screen of the TV and back again. "Five… four… three…" he mumbled to himself, as if it was the New Year's Eve. "One…!" His eyes darkened with the pleasure of a prideful kill as Lind L. Tailor clenched his chest and threw his head back in tension, holding his last breath and releasing it with his soul. The man fell over the desk he had been sitting at, his head hitting the papers on which he had printed his speech on the evil nature of Kira's deeds.

Caterina found her escape through an open bathroom window, climbing up on the toilet and pulling herself up. Her arms were aching and trembling terribly because of the time spent hung and her eyes were glossy with tears threatening to spill any moment, but the girl was determined to save herself. Part of her knew her father would have let himself be killed just to give her an extra minute to escape. The other side of her was desperately trying to believe her father knew what he was doing and would never allow himself to be caught off-guard.

Kira was grinning, trying hard to hold back his laughter just so he won't offer those annoying nurses another excuse to sit with him. "…What's wrong? You've got nothing else to say?" he mumbled in a low voice, incapable of holding back from mocking the recently deceased. The TV transmission was immediately interrupted.

Surprisingly, however, the screen had turned white, showing the logo of L in the Old English Text font. A robotic voice spoke next, clearly shocked by the event. _'I… I thought the test was just in case, but I… I never thought it would actually happen. Kira, it seems you can kill people without having to be there in person. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't just witnessed it. Listen to me, Kira – if you did indeed kill L, the man you just saw die on the television, I should tell you that he was an inmate whose execution was scheduled for today. That was not me. The police arrested him in absolute secrecy so you wouldn't have heard about him on TV or through the internet. It would appear that not even you have access on information on this type of criminals.'_

Ryuk began chuckling. _'Heh. He got you there!'_

 _'But I assure you,'_ the robotic voice continued its monologue as Light just felt the sky falling down over him, _'L is real. I do exist. Now, try to kill me! What's wrong? Come on, right now! I dare you! Can't you do it?!'_

Both Kira and Light were left speechless. Such a simple trap and he had fallen for it… He couldn't kill someone whose name and face he did not know – those were the conditions set by the Death Note itself. _'That bastard…'_ he mentally cursed L. Kira felt the rage and frustration, he felt the blood speeding through his veins as L was publicly humiliating him and diminishing his power.

Crawling out, Caterina looked around her. She was in the middle of nowhere, with no visible road ahead other than the wheel tracks on the ground. There was a dark SUV parked about five meters away and a shadow on the ground creeping up from behind the wall. Without any plan or a good hiding spot, the girl slipped back through the same small window into the basement bathroom. It was almost at the same level with the ground so she doubted the guard would pay it any attention.

Reaching out in a moment of desperation and panic, Caterina grabbed the guard's ankles and pulled him down as forcefully as her aching arms allowed her, banging his head against the water reservoir repeatedly. She hit his forehead again and again, until she felt the man going limp. Breathing deeply a couple of times, the girl looked up towards the ceiling and held her hands up for prayer. "…Please, don't let him be dead. Please…"

On the verge of tears, she searched the man's pockets for a phone and took a small gun that she hid under the thin belt of her jeans. She then took off the man's belt and tied his hands behind his back, just in case he woke up before she would have made her escape. Crawling back out, she stood there for a moment and listened. Other guards present outside meant she could not get too far without a confrontation and gunshots would have definitely drawn a lot of unnecessary attention on her.

Around the same time, a knock on the door made Light jump in surprise. Tossing the Death Note pages and the pen under his pillow and laying back down, he didn't have to act exhausted to fool his visitors. The surprise had sent a wave of dizziness washing over his head and his limbs were numb and heavy once again. "Yes?" he called.

"Light…" his father came in, his face a few shades paler and his eyes red and tired. "How are you feeling?" He neared his son and sat on a chair beside his bed. "Do you need anything?"

His son shook his head slowly. "No, I'm fine… Thank you, father, but no."

Nodding, the man revealed the real reason why he had been allowed there when the rest of the family wasn't. "Light, what happened there? And why were you at such a notorious bar in the first place?"

"…Has it been twenty-four hours yet?" Kira asked in return. One wrong move was enough to prove him wrong. He may not be the smartest when acting on impulse, he was capable of making mistakes and he was not in a powerful enough position from which he could fix these. Kira couldn't afford making any other mistakes.

His father's brows furrowed and his face darkened. "I just want to know you had nothing to do with it."

Having missed the morning news report, Kira tried to get as much information out of the police chief as possible. "Is Caterina alright? And Shin – what happened to him?"

Sighing, the man shook his head. "Shin… the boy didn't make it. We haven't found Caterina yet. Did she call you there? Was that where she threw her parties?"

Already dizzy, Light frowned and took a moment to understand the question. "…No. Why would you think of that? She's not the type to throw parties, especially not like what was happening in that bar."

"Then why were you there?" Light's father begged for an explanation, worried sick and annoyed by the few pieces of information he had.

Kira remembered what the police knew and figured out a way to send them away. "I went to meet with Caterina so we could go out for a few hours. We didn't have a plan. I took a cab to the hotel where she was staying because I was getting impatient. After I picked her up, the same cab was still there, but there were two or three men in the car. I can't remember their faces, it all happened too fast. They got off and took her from my arms, threw her in the back and rushed off."

The man was shocked. "This girl had been kidnapped? Why didn't you call the police?" He had not taken the matter seriously before. A rich man being paranoid after a robbery was nothing out of the ordinary, but a kidnapping? The chief hadn't realized before just how grave was the situation.

Light sighed. "I didn't know what to do! I tried to tell you, but you wouldn't listen!" After a moment of awkward tension and silence, he went on. "I found a phone number in a file and called her father. We met just outside the station and went after her. I have no idea why Shin was there or what they wanted with Caterina. There was a blond woman there too… Tall, wide shoulders, in a see-through black shirt."

The man nodded. "Anything else you remember?"

"She… I think she was talking to somebody, arguing. Caterina's father and some bodyguards broke down the door, then smoke filled the room. My eyes stung and my nose, throat and lungs were burning. I fell next to someone, I'm not sure who. After a while, someone came in and kicked me out of the way. I think it was a man… He talked something with the blond woman, I heard her voice."

"Can you remember what they spoke of?" his father asked again, well aware Light would tell him everything that could help the police track down the kidnappers.

"No. The next thing I knew, I was in the hospital." Light looked at his father with interest. "Do you think it could be the same blond who murdered their driver?"

The chief thought about it for a moment. "It is still early to assume this, but… I believe you could be right. There was a laboratory there used to refine and combine snake venoms and various drugs. We also found over a hundred snakes." Disgust was written all over his face. "Light, you've put yourself in a very dangerous situation. It is a miracle you are even alive! To do what you've tried to do, agents train for years and even then, they can never be sure if they will return alive."

Light nodded. "I understand, father. I was reckless, but the important thing is that I have survived. I hope I could give you something useful… I want Diego's murderer and Caterina's kidnappers brought to justice. Besides…" The teenager stopped for a moment, allowing his other half to think it through. Perhaps it would be a good idea to share her suspicions. "Caterina seemed convinced the man who ordered her mother's assassination is also behind this. She told me when we met at the hotel that this man kept threatening them. Father, I think that if you catch this man, you will do the entire world a favor. He is a murderer and the head of a criminal organization."

The man set his hand over Light's shoulder. Kira panicked for a moment, thinking he might see the pages of the Death Note or worse, to touch them by mistake. With Ryuk observing the scene, it would have been a disaster. Light shifted so his back would cover the edge of the pillow.

"Light, we are working on it. We will link the investigations once we have enough evidence to support the girl's suspicions, but we will consider this theory. The man you are talking about is known as the Snake. He is wanted in several countries for premeditated murder, acts of sadism and torture, drugs trafficking, prostitution, slavery, corruption, blackmail, robbery and more. This girl…" he sighed, "You wouldn't believe the people she is involved with. Her father has been suspected of similar crimes in the past, but somehow, he had never been sentenced. The files keep disappearing…"

Kira nodded. "I thought so… Father, please do everything possible to catch this criminal, the Snake. After that, we can worry about Caterina's father, but for now, I think the Snake is a bigger problem. Unlike her father, this one is more dangerous, unpredictable, and most importantly… he could be holding hostages right now, as we talk. You need to find him!"

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Guess who's back? Back again! ...Gentleman Death is. *sigh* The next chapter was so not planned to happen until Near's final confrontation with Kira, which is in another few years (plot-time). So officially, I have no idea where I'm going with this. Good thing my beta, **Abandoned Sock,** remains loyal to me and as always, keeps proofreading another chapter. _

_But anyway, here's the famous confrontation that everyone has been expecting ever since I mentioned L into this story. The setting is different and Kira is a tad later, but the result is the same. Well, except perhaps the part where he realizes what a big mistake he makes and that he should really watch it from now on. As a disoriented writer, I will definitely encourage him to do so._

 _I'm really glad to see two new reviewers. By the way, **Katiekatexoxo,** the title is a cross between two songs that I thought matched the plot of this story when I published it. The first is "This is Gospel" from Panic! At The Disco and the second is "Ain't No Rest for the Wicked" by Cage the Elephant. Also, since we're talking musical influences on this story, I used to write for Anastasia to songs like "Without You" or "Fu(ked My Way Up To The Top" by Lana Del Rey. Many scenes between Light and Caterina were written with "Flawless", "Daddy Issues", or "Lurk" by The Neighbourhood as background noise. Some of the explosive or tense scenes were written on songs like "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" (Lorde), "Hit and Run" (Lana del Rey), "Emperor's New Clothes" (P!ATD), "Bohemian Rapsody" (Queen), or even "Purple Lamborghini" (Skrillex & Rick Ross) or "Glory" (Hollywood Undead). I also used the soundtracks of Death Note, Lucifer, Suicide Squad, Sucker Punch, and some songs used in popular Death Note AMVs (for some, I don't know the name of the band / artist). _

_In other news, I have a good one and a bad one. The good news is I am finally finding enough time for writing every week now so you won't have to wait for two months for one update. The bad news is... more like half and half. I'm at that point where I'm no longer the all-knowing writer, I'm merely a spectator like all of you, while the characters are acting on their own in my head. That means anything could happen and I have no idea until seconds before it's done. By this point, not even the canon events are guaranteed to happen, or at least not in the exactly same way. Well, you've been warned!_


	34. XXXIII - Father

_XXXIII - Father_

* * *

The Snake was watching the show, enjoying it from time to time. His torturer had been stabbed by the Dragon, who still had the strength to move after having his skin and muscles peeled off his back and forearms. "Liz?" he called. "Queen Liz! Get down here!" Of course, nobody answered. "Lizzy? Oh, your majesty?" the man called her again. "Do me a favor and move your flat ass over here!"

The Dragon found the strength to smirk, kicking the torturer with his feet and stepping over the man's neck. "She left you, Noburu… Just like you left everyone who showed you any kindness." He felt a knife going up from his ankle to his knee, but the Dragon kept pressing the other's throat with his heel. "She caught the chance and left. Either that, or she just died immediately after you left her alone."

Standing up using his crutches, the Snake gritted his teeth. "Nobody kills my women but me! Me, myself – I am the only one killing my women, my men, my clients! Me! Nobody else!"

"We'll see about that," the man grinned through his pain as he kicked the torturer's head with his other foot until his neck broke. "You see… There comes a time when we all pay for our sins. None is ever allowed to go into purgatory before we pay our debts to this world."

"You're nuts! Fuck you, I'll just let you rot in here!" Boiling with rage, the Snake jumped his way upstairs and looked through the room. "Liz!" he called again, listening to the silence all around. "Where the hell are you?!" It was then he noticed the door to the other room was closed. Bianca had a habit of not closing doors very well so they could hear each other from various parts of a house. "Lemon pie?"

The man opened the door and let it swing back. He looked at the woman hanging from the ceiling and at the chair fallen underneath her. He looked at her wide open eyes and her blue lips. He saw all color from her face faded to gray and the ugly bruise around her neck, where the cable was. "…That little bitch," he growled through his teeth. "I should have killed her when I had the chance!"

Slowly making her way out, Caterina began running as soon as her numb legs allowed her. She was following the wheel tracks, aware they would eventually lead her to the nearest road. Her plan was to make it to the asphalt and then hook a ride. Either that, or she could call the police or… No. She quickly shook her head. The police were not very reliable at the moment. Besides, she had no idea where she was. The best idea seemed to be hooking a ride until the nearest city and pray she doesn't get raped or murdered in the mean time.

But her legs didn't take her far enough. Muscle cramps were slowing her down until she began limping, barely able to move her left leg. Her thigh and calf were burning in pain and hard like the muscles of a statue. Terrified, the girl looked back towards the house of the Snake. Since nobody seemed aware of her disappearance yet, she limped behind some spiky bushes and began massaging her legs with one hand. With the other, she used the phone she had stolen from the guard to call one of her father's associates in Japan.

"Is this Takeshi Ooi?" she asked in a shaking voice as soon as someone answered the phone.

 _'_ _I am his secretary,'_ a woman answered. _'Can I know who is looking for Mr. Ooi?'_

"I am the daughter of Giuliano Amadeo. Can I please talk to Mr. Ooi?" Nervous, she looked over her shoulder and through the bushes to see if anyone was coming after her. "This is an emergency. Can you hurry up?"

 _'Mr. Ooi is currently in a very important meeting. Can I give him your message, miss?'_

"Yes. Tell him that my father and I are held hostages. Please, track down this phone number."

Light was making some efforts as well, though in a different way. He had asked his father to talk to several criminals for help. Those were already on Kira's black list, though he was glad he didn't have the time to kill them yet. They were known to had worked with the Snake before and Light thought they could help speed up the investigation.

In the mean time, he was still in bed, annoyed by the two nurses and his worries. One of them knocked before coming in, though the other didn't seem to bother. That was a problem, especially since he had to keep doing his job. That morning, they seemed disappointed to hear him talking to the doctor.

"Can you recall everything that happened? Are there any missing links or blurred images?" he asked.

"Yes, and I have already talked to my father about that day. I remember everything clearly, in a chronological order," Light confirmed.

"Any headaches, dizziness, nausea…?" the doctor asked as Light shook his head.

"None of that," he lied without a second thought. Kira was impatient, barely waiting to hear the magic words…

"Any respiratory problems?" the doctor asked on a bored tone, checking his patient's answers on a sheet of paper.

"Nothing. I've told you, I am feeling much better now. I don't think there's any reason why I should occupy the bed any longer," Light tried to shift the discussion.

"Well, then… I'll come see you again this afternoon. Unless you experience any reoccurring symptoms, you may go home tomorrow morning."

"Can't I go tonight? I can call my father when he's done with his shift," the teenager asked.

"Why are you in such a hurry, young man?" the doctor raised an eyebrow at him.

Smiling with a hint of amusement, Light found a believable excuse in a blink of an eye. "I still have some homework to do. I didn't finish it because I thought I'd have the weekend free. Tomorrow is Sunday and I still have my part of a project to write…"

Sighing, the doctor shook his head. "Even if you do go home this evening, you need to take it easy for the next week. I will give you a permission slip for your classes."

Kira was actually glad he had left the matter to Light. A week off from school could help him focus on his job more than ever and he could become more organized with his work. At the same time, he hoped to find out if Caterina and her father were still alive.

Light couldn't help but imagine how his auburn-haired girl would be without her daddy. He had thought about taking him out of the picture before, but her ambition and her connections had made him reconsider. Now, though… there was a chance the man would die for good and he wasn't to blame. A thin grin spread over Kira's face before he even noticed it. If Caterina was left vulnerable, he could shape her beliefs so she would continue his work when he fell.

The matter of succession was on the King's mind as well, though from a slightly different perspective. He could remember Caterina talking about that mad medieval ruler and his pyramid of heads as he was driving a stolen car towards one of the earliest refuges used by the Snake. The two certainly had something in common when it came to creepy, bloody stories from the past, but if he wasn't sure Caterina would actually replicate something like that, he knew for certain the Snake definitely would.

"Who is this man we're after?" the thirteen year old asked from the passenger seat.

"He used to be like me. We were both taken in by the Dragon, raised and supported and all that," the man answered him.

"Like you do now with me, right?"

The King grinned. "Yeah, pretty much, but we were younger. I was seven, he was… nine, I think. Now, he wants to take over the Dragon and everything he owns. He's blind from his greed, and that makes him very dangerous. Whatever happens, I want you to stay in the car, alright?"

The boy thought for a moment, then looked up at him again. "What if they get you?"

"Stay hidden and find your way out," came the short answer. "But don't worry - they won't."

After a moment of silence, the two saw the side road that led to the Snake's refuge. "Look!" the Chinese boy yelled. "There's someone over there!"

Taking a gun from the back, the man stopped the car and took off. "Hide," he told the boy right before shutting the door.

All this time, the Snake had been searching the house on all levels. He had found one of his guards with his hands tied behind his back with his belt and stumbling in his loose dress pants, but instead of killing him on the spot for incompetence, the Snake untied his hands and gave him another gun.

"You incompetent…" he gritted his teeth. "You're lucky I still need your services." In truth, that was one of five guards the Snake kept around. Every man was important, especially when holding hostages.

Aware the Snake needed no spoken apologies, the guard accepted the gun, lifted up his pants and put his belt back on. "She will pay, sir."

Holding up his index and trembling with anger, the Snake turned towards his guard. "Shh…!" He held one hand in the air, showing the silence spreading between then right before continuing on a hushed voice. "I don't want to hear it. You've just been humiliated, by a fucking child!" the man began raising his voice. "A fucking teenager! She's not even legal yet, but she fucking humiliated you! Is this why I pay you?! Is it?!"

"No, sir…!" the guard mumbled.

"Shh…! Shut your mouth already! Shut your mouth! I don't want to hear another sound from you, do you understand?" The man caught his guard's face with one hand, covering his mouth. "Not until you rip out that little girl's tongue and eat it. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!" he suddenly yelled so loudly, the entire house heard him.

The guard nodded his head quickly. He had seen his boss killing other employees several times and it was a sight to remember. Last time, the unfortunate two who had fallen asleep on duty were covered in small cuts enough so they would bleed all over and thrown in a room with several hungry dogs. The Snake sat back and watched as his men were eaten alive.

Before the Snake could say another word, he could hear a helicopter flying quite low somewhere close to his house. Rushing upstairs as soon as his crutches could take him and cursing the Dragon for the missing leg, the man finally made it to one of the windows and looked outside. There were men dressed in black descending from the helicopter on a rope, all armed and with their faces covered. They were running towards his house, determined to break in and with no trouble killing anyone who dared stand in their way.

"You! Go get my car, you useless imbecile! Stop standing there like a statue and go!" he spat the order towards his guard.

"Yes, sir!" The man had a grin on his face. Although he had been serving the Snake for years, it was easy to see his boss was going down. Walking towards the door on a slow pace, he opened the door wide and immediately put up his hands in surrender. "The one you are looking for is inside!"

One of the masked men spoke something into a device attached to his collar, probably asking for instructions. After a moment, he pointed his gun at the guard. "Throw away your guns and weapons and lay on the ground, face down and hands over your head!"

The guard did as he was instructed. From the house, the Snake could hear the demands. "Fucking traitor…! I'll show them…" Going downstairs where he held the Dragon hostage, he sat on the floor at an angle from which he could shoot anyone coming in.

In the mean time, Caterina saw the man who had helped them immediately after her mother's assassination. Standing up, the teenager ran towards the man and opened her arms. "But how did you… How did you know?"

The King wrapped one arm around her. "So much about that pyramid of heads, kitten," he joked with a smirk. "What's going on there?" he nodded towards the house.

Caterina didn't know yet if it would be a good idea to tell him everything. "I don't know. Padre is in there, somewhere… I-I don't know if he's…" Tears ran down her cheeks as she clung to the man for support. She didn't even want to think about the possibility.

With a cooler head, the King understood what Caterina could not bring herself to say aloud. "Hopefully, he's still alive. Come on, I'll take you home."

"No!" she immediately protested, pushing him away. "What about Padre? I'm not leaving him there!"

"Listen, there's a war going on there. We can't get near it unless we know the winning party is on our side."

"But they are! I called them," the girl dropped the bomb in front of him.

"You did what?! But you said you didn't know- HEY!" Before he could finish, the girl was already running back towards the Snake's refuge. "Kitten! Don't!" The man began immediately running after her. It didn't take him more than a couple of seconds to get a hold of her arm and pull her back. "I said, 'don't'!"

"I'm not abandoning him and you shouldn't, either!" the teenager protested, trying to push his hand off her arm. "It hurts! Let go of me!"

"Your father would kill me to know I've let you put yourself in such danger. If those people are on your side, they will handle the situation. You're coming with me." The King pulled her along to the car and opened the door for her to sit in the back.

The girl began to cry, feeling just like her mother. She could hear her own words coming back from her memory, words she used to throw in her mother's face every single time they had an argument. She felt weak, dependent on men, foolish, incapable of doing anything on her own.

All this time, the Snake had been trembling in a corner, keeping a gun straight towards the first few stairs that led into the room. The Dragon could feel his limbs heavier and colder with every moment, slowly bleeding and covering the floor around him in a thick layer of darkness. For a moment, he wanted to see if his blood was still red, or if it had turned black like the bones of those many, many innocents he had burned to a crisp simply because they happened to be related to one traitor.

Jumping all of a sudden, the Snake turned to look at his former caretaker. "What the hell are you doing? Have you lost your mind, or what?" The Dragon kept mumbling, completely ignoring him. "Answer me, damn it! Answer my fucking question!"

"Praying," the Dragon eventually said shortly.

"Praying?!" the other repeated, frowning in confusion. "Are you kidding me?! You're actually praying! What the hell do you expect, huh? Is this western god of yours gonna climb down a ladder of rainbows and fallen stars and take you to an imaginary castle in the sky?"

The man went on for another few moments before answering. "Believe whatever you wish, but I don't think it's such a good idea to mock a god, yours or not. If my God can forgive the tenth part of my crimes and reduce my sentence even by an hour, it is worth every word. I'd much rather pray with my last breath than waste it on insults and threats."

The younger of them spat on the floor. "That's my respect for your god. For him and any other. That's bullshit! If there was a god, I wouldn't have lost my fucking leg. And I wouldn't be in this filthy basement with a dead rat and another one, half-dead and praying."

The Dragon smirked. "I had lost many things… And I deserved the losses and the punishment every time. You did too – try to admit this, at least in front of yourself. But I had my blessings… I lived like a monarch and now, I die like a slave. From the dirt we rise and back into the dirt we fall."

"Shut the hell up," the other groaned, annoyed and frustrated by everything he heard. "Shut up before I cut you open like a fucking pig and spill your guts!"

Chuckling, the Dragon found the strength to mock him. "Please! It would speed up my death, thank you!"

Enraged, the Snake pointed the gun at him and shot several bullets into the Dragon's legs and abdomen. "Can't you shut up already?! You've done enough! You've fucking ruined me! You damn bastard!"

Even so, the Dragon found the strength to smile, because he could see the guns pointed towards the other's head. "…Took you long enough," he greeted the saviors in black. "Who sent you?" he asked between gasps for air. His vision was a little blurry, there was a humming noise echoing in his ears and his heart was pounding in his skull.

The men surrounded the Snake and executed him with a bullet to the head before he could make a scene and attempt another escape plan. Among them there were the guard that had just switched sides and a man who had taken off his mask. He appeared to be the leader of the team, with a long, thin scar on his face from the hairline to his jaw. "Sir," he bowed his head as he approached the Dragon and unchained him.

Unable to hold his own weight and with his mind falling in and out of consciousness, the Dragon crumbled over the man's shoulder. "…I want to know two things. Who sent you?"

The man supported him at his best, but the Dragon was heavy. "Mister Ooi, sir."

Nodding, the Dragon took a few moments to catch his breath. "Caterina… Where is she?"

"We don't know, sir. Alive, for certain. She had contacted Mr. Ooi, sir," the man continued, delivering the answers short and clear. The way he spoke reminded the Dragon of the military force.

"Good… Don't let anything happen to her. Tell Takeshi that," he gasped. "Now, listen to me… Kill me, then burn this hellhole. Burn it to the ground… Takeshi will know what to do after that." The man was aware his time was up. He could barely feel the warmth of life pumping through his veins and the pain was slowly growing numb, like the rest of his senses.

One moment, he saw everything nice and sharp, then the other, his vision would blur until everything was lost in a fog of fluff and stars. Giuliano could see the stars as he felt himself be laid down on the ground, like his adoptive mother would every night. He remembered the thin mattress he had pulled further away from the window so he wouldn't feel the cold bite of late November winds. Through that window he would watch the night sky and count the stars until the late hours of the night, thinking one day he was going to hold them all in the palm of his hand.

The man felt the cold kiss of death on his forehead as he imagined his mother kissing him goodnight. Breathing in once more, he held his breath, waiting for the loudest sound of all. Giuliano called out to his Catholic God to descend from the Italian paintings forever stuck in his memory and hold him like the Father he never knew. After what seemed like an eternity, the last he heard was the sound of a single gunshot.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock** , as always. _

_Like I said, this wasn't supposed to happen. But now that it has, let me reveal a few things about the two._

 _The Dragon was initially inspired by Light, originally meant to take out Near after the DN ending we all know. I sketched his design with the song "I Want It All / We Will Rock You", a mashup from Queen featured as a character's theme in the film Suckerpunch. I wanted him to be a strong, almost god-like character, with a lot of influence over others and money that would place him in the elite class of society. In the Chinese culture, the dragon is a symbol of power, strength and associated with good luck and wisdom. In the European culture, the equivalent of the dragon is associated with death, disaster, the burning of crops and villages, with greed and hostility. By giving him mixed origins, I wanted to bring both images into the character of Giuliano Amadeo. Also, the surname he chose after killing his adoptive father would translate as "one loved by God", reflecting his belief and the influence the Catholic church had on him. Although intended to be a supporting character until the very end, this is the character I regret most._

 _What I should have covered better was the background of the Snake. His symbol is taken from the Bible, as well as from a Romanian saying of "rising (nurturing) a snake to your chest" referring to betrayal. Taken in by the Dragon, he decides to leave at some point and try to make it on his own, taking the alias of the Snake and opening the Green Snake bar. His role is alike to that of the serpent in the Bible, tempting Anastasia and eventually, ordering her murder. He would be better fit for the Queen mashup mentioned before, a uni-dimensional character designed as a worthy opponent for the Dragon. After the Dragon detonates a bomb in his car as part of the events in Warning (chapter XXII), the Snake snaps and becomes incapable of controlling his impulses. A few of his scenes are inspired by the Joker (Suicide Squad and cut scenes). As for his love for Bianca, I am letting you debate whether someone like him was capable of love or now._


	35. XXXIV - Before Midnight

**_For-note_** _:_ _Collaboration_ _open! Details at the end of the chapter._

* * *

 _XXXIV – Before Midnight_

* * *

As soon as the door opened before him, his younger sister jumped and hugged him tightly. Before he got the chance to push her away and check her temperature, the girl slapped him as hard as she could.

"You idiot! You could have died!" For the first time in years, Light could see her eyes glossy with real tears, not the type she would shed over the death of a fictional character in a TV series.

Frowning, Light sighed and took a side step so he could see his mother. She seemed just as worried, but was definitely controlling her emotions better. "I know, but I did what I had to do."

"We understand, dear. How are you feeling? Do you want anything for breakfast?" his mother asked. It was still morning when he had been allowed to leave the hospital and his father had escorted him home.

The teenager shook his head. "Thank you, mom, but I can't eat right now…"

His father did not even enter the house. "I have to go back to work. Take care," he told his wife right before turning to leave. It was easy to see he would have much rather taken at least one day off just so he could make sure his only son was not going through any possible complications, but the man had no choice. He was the chief of police and there was a mysterious serial killer loose on the streets. He couldn't just leave the investigation and take some time to himself – on the contrary, he knew he was most likely going to work extra hours.

Nodding, the woman looked at her son again. "Do you want some tea, then? We'll wait until lunch if you say you're not hungry now."

"…Something with lemon, please." Light had a bad taste in his mouth from the breakfast he had barely touched that morning that he couldn't get rid of. Then again, he knew it could be an illusion, the result of being in a hospital room with its specific scent that he disliked. Light couldn't wait to take a shower and change his clothes. He couldn't help but feel like his body was now smelling of medicine and antibacterial chemicals.

Sayu looked at him for a moment. "…Are you really feeling well, or just saying that in front of them?" she asked once their mother was off to the kitchen.

"It's nothing worth worrying about. I've been poisoned. You can imagine I'm not feeling great overnight." Taking the bag with his few belongings, the teenager climbed up the stairs.

"…Grumpier than usual means you're still sick. Fine, then! Stay in your room all day like you always do. It's not like conversation or fresh air helps anyone…" With a shrug, the girl turned her back on him. Much to her surprise, her brother sighed in annoyance and went into his room without giving her any complicated and meaningless comebacks.

Kira turned on the TV and laid on the bed. He hated the weakness still present in his body, making him much too tired after climbing up a couple of stairs. He opened the water bottle beside his bed, but it was already a couple of days old. When he smelled the scent, he frowned and set the bottle down.

 _'What's the matter?'_ Ryuk asked. _'Not thirsty?'_

"It's old. I'll bring a new one after lunch," he explained briefly. Light connected his phone to the internet and began going through lists of criminals. He had his Death Note close enough so he could do his duty from bed.

On the news, there was a new report on a spontaneous fire. It quickly drew Kira's attention since that was the trademark of the Dragon – Caterina's father. _'Three more bodies had been found recently in the basement of the building. Our sources declared that the space had been turned into a torture room and that one of the bodies must have been that of a prisoner. We remind you that during the night of December fifth to the sixth, a truck driver had spotted the flames from afar and called the emergency number. At first, the firemen had found the body of a woman, hanged in one of the rooms. Could this be the layer of the notorious head of a criminal organization, also known as the Dragon? Here with me are Dr. Quinn, criminal psychologist, and Mr. Akira, detective and crime investigation professor at the Rising Sun Private Academy.'_

The professor shrugged and kept his palms in front of him, fingers barely touching. _'It would appear, from the information we have so far, that this is the result of someone's plan going terribly wrong. First, it is well known that leaders of criminal organizations have each their own style and like most serial killers, act in patterns. I believe Dr. Quinn can confirm this and offer a better explanation.'_

 _'Yes, of course. Let me begin by saying the scene looks more like a battlefield after an ambush rather than the result of somebody's plan. Detective, I have heard that you suspect two crime lords to have had a showdown there, correct?' Once the other one nodded, the psychologist continued. 'I tend to believe that what we see is the result of a third party intervening between the two. I had studied the crimes associated with both the Dragon and the Snake. There is a lot to discuss and analyze, but to cut it short, this is all too careless and messy to be the signature of any of the two. What they had in common was the love for their work. They both left clues on a crime scene, setting it as if it was a stage. The Dragon usually acted indoors and set fire to the entire building, usually through a controlled explosion set from a distance, while the Snake initially left snakes on the crime scene, then had a short period of pulling out the tongue of the victim and splitting it in half, eventually evolving into the clean stage that we had gotten used to in the past several years, where poison in the blood becomes his signature.'_

 _'What do you think about the hanged woman?_ ' the presenter asked both of her guests.

Light covered the Death Note when he heard steps coming up the stairs. By the pace, he knew it was his mother. Laying back down, he pretended to be watching the talk on TV when the door opened.

"Light, you shouldn't be watching this. You're too consumed by what's happening in the world…" the woman spoke with compassion, setting down a cup of tea on a bedside table.

Smiling weakly in return, Light sat up on the edge of his bed. "Thank you. I told you, I'm fine… I just need to know. Caterina and her father are still missing, right? What if they're among those?"

Shaking her head, the woman took the remote control and changed the channel to one with music. "You've done more than most people your age do. I think that girl should be grateful for everything you've gone through already. Now please, try to rest your mind as well. I'm afraid it might not be enough to stay in bed if you keep thinking about investigations and possibilities."

Sighing, Light nodded. "Alright, I will try… Mom? Is dad alright? He looks more tired than usual." On one side, Light was starting to worry. On the other, Kira wanted some information so he could figure out what his next move will be.

"You've got all of us worried sick. I think that's what you've noticed."

Light nodded. He was not going to get any information from his mother… She didn't seem to know anything. He thought about Caterina then. The girl would not allow him to keep important secrets from her, he could be sure of that. If they had any chance of ending up together, it meant he was going to have to tell her everything.

In the mean time, Caterina was rolling her eyes at the King. Her phone was ringing for the third time that morning and the man still refused to let her answer it.

"As if! We both know phones can be tracked while they're ringing, too. What's the point? Just give me my phone back already!"

"You're not answering it!" the King tried to impose his point of view. "We don't know who is calling you, meaning that it's not safe to answer it."

"…I'm not the one who broke out of prison by corrupting a kid to help you out and then kidnap me. Now you're stealing my phone and isolating me."

Angered and stressed, the King eventually gave in after more than two hours of hearing the same offenses. "Fine! I'll answer it and put it on speaker."

Caterina shrugged. "You're still giving it back, but it'll do for now."

As soon as the King pressed the green button, the voice at the other end noticed. _'Good morning. I am the secretary of Mr. Ooi. I had been warned there may be a third party listening to this conversation, so please let me read you the message Mr. Ooi has for you.'_

Caterina frowned in confusion for a moment. The King looked just as confused by the situation. "Wait. Who did you say you're working for?"

 _'Please allow me to ignore this insulting question and move on. '_ The man known as the Dragon is dead. According to his testimony, the custody of his daughter goes to Mr. Ooi, who will become her legal tutor from the moment the testimony becomes active and until the eighteenth birthday of the minor. _' Also, you are invited to meet over lunch at the Presidential Hotel. Whoever you are, sir, you will be rewarded for your services.'_

The man looked at Caterina as she stared blankly ahead, motionless and with an emotionless expression. Although shocked as well, he knew it was his duty to take responsibility now. "How do we know this is not a trap?"

 _'You will be presented the original testimony, written in ink on paper three years ago. It had been uncovered from a safe underneath a house of seniors in Sicily, in south Italy. The document has entered Mr. Ooi's possession one hour ago. Any other details you wish to hear in order to convince yourself of the authenticity of this offer?'_ the woman at the other end of the phone asked on a superior tone, though trying to remain calm. She was growing more annoyed every moment. "Sir? Are you still on the line?" she asked when a moment of silence passed.

 _'Yes… What time do we have to be there?'_ the male eventually answered her. His voice sounded empty and the secretary assumed it was because of the shock. That was everyone's reaction when hearing that the Dragon was, in fact, dead. Through the years, he had turned himself into some sort of a legend, almost superhuman - impossible to take down.

"Please be in the back of the restaurant at 1 p.m. today. Someone will lead you to your table. I believe it is self-understood that Mr. Ooi wishes to take the child then."

 _'…Yes, fine. I'll bring another child with me. He stays with me.'_

"Only a moment, please." Pressing a button to keep the conversation on hold, she called her employer in his office. "Mr. Ooi? The caretaker wishes to bring a third person to the meeting, a child."

 _'Very well. Details don't interest me. Did he accept?'_ a deep voice asked through the speaker.

"Yes, sir. I gave him the time and place." She didn't have to hang up because her boss already did. Instead, she continued her conversation to the mysterious man who had taken in Caterina. "Are you still on line, sir?"

 _'It's me…'_ the voice of a young woman answered. _'So?'_

"The presence of the child is allowed. Are you Ms. Amadeo?" the secretary asked. It would be best to try and win the girl on their side in order to prevent any rebellious acts in the near future. Those were rather common in similar situations, but highly inconvenient.

 _'…Yes. You picked up last night, right?'_ the woman heard her asking in a very strange way compared to the previous time they had spoken. If then she seemed ready to take on the world, now she sounded like she had given up.

"Correct. My condolences, miss." In response, the woman heard a weak _'mm-hmm'_ and a sigh. "If there is anything you wish to alleviate your state, please say."

 _'…I want the Snake and all of his men and connections to burn.'_

"I will inform Mr. Ooi of your request. Anything else you wish for…?"

"Yes. But I will speak for myself from now on. The new term is eleven o'clock. This is not asking for permission. I will disappear unless my conditions are met exactly. I wish to receive the keys to my separated quarters with room service, a new phone with a new SIM card, and a gun. I want the wardrobes to be completely empty. I want Mr. Ooi to grant me access to one of the bank accounts my father had and I want him to ensure my protection. I want my own bodyguards and my personal driver. Lastly, I want to be able to speak directly to Mr. Ooi through phone calls and written messages whenever something important happens – I do not need others speaking with him in my name, I can take responsibility for my own words. That will be all for now," she hang up.

Caterina felt the tears becoming colder in the corners of her eyes as she looked up towards the ceiling to keep them from falling. Once he was sure the conversation was done, the King raised an eyebrow at her as he was assembling one of his guns. "Are you sure about that?"

"About what?" Caterina asked in return. "About… his passing? About that woman? About this arrangement he never mentioned?"

"'Bout what you've asked for. Are you sure that's a good idea?" the man clarified. "This Ooi guy… who is he? I never heard of him. He isn't one of the kids taken in by the Dragon – I should've known."

"Then…?" Caterina asked back. "You've been working with Padre for years. How come you never heard of him?"

"Umm… Boogle says he's a businessman," Yao interrupted them. "He's _'Vice President of TV Enterprises'_ at the Yotsuba Corporation, born on March 31st under the sign of Aries, in the year of the Dragon in '64… Well, that explains a lot. He's supposedly the guy directing the meetings of the Yotsuba Corporation Vice Presidents, Presidents, and other important people… and there are pics on the web with him meeting with other important people."

"What kind of important people?" Caterina asked, walking over to where the boy was surfing the internet on a bulky laptop.

"This guy owned Fanasonic until a year and half ago, when he died in a plane crush. This guy here is the Marketing Director of LuckyOil from Russia. This guy is Mr. Chang, he owns the largest chain of restaurants in China and has recently opened several in Taiwan. You know him, right, sir?" the boy looked towards the King and turned the laptop around.

The man nodded. "I helped him open his first restaurant. Your father's fish was mostly for his restaurants in the region."

"Thought so," the boy mumbled. "So apparently, the guy is big. Strange thing is that this is pretty much all I can find about him. No interviews or affairs or luxurious trips and all the usual stuff I can look up for every other associate."

"I see…" Caterina stood and walked up to the table where the King had assembled a few of his guns. "Does he have any family?" she asked the boy who began typing.

"Nope! Just his dad, but it doesn't say his name or anything. Weird guy…"

"You have to teach me how to aim," Caterina demanded. In the mean time, Yao was just lighting up a cigarette.

"Why?" the King asked right before hearing the spark of a lighter. "What the-! Put that shit down! Where did you get that?"

The child shrugged. "I'm eleven now. I had a friend back home who smokes since he was eight."

"You can't smoke until you stop growing!" The man took the cigarette out of the child's mouth, threw it on the floor and stepped on it.

"When's that?" the boy pouted.

"Around twenty," Caterina answered in a bore. "Now teach me how to aim." She pointed the gun at him waiting for a reaction. When nothing happened, she pointed it at Yao.

"Now hold up a minute here! You're not pointing that at anyone, understood?! I'll show you, fine, but don't play with guns like that!" The King sighed. "Hell… You never killed anyone. That's the big thing. You have to kill once and get over it, or it will haunt you."

The auburn-haired girl bit her lip and took a deep breath in. "That doesn't matter. Show me! I will do anything necessary to save my own life. From now on, I'm looking after myself. You should do the same."

Eventually, the King obeyed the order. Of course, it soon turned into Yao's first lesson as well – neither of the children knew how to aim, even if they'd seen it done so many times before they had lost count. Before they even realized it though, the time had passed by. A phone call drew everyone's attention as Caterina set the gun down and went to pick up with a bitter smile on her lips.

"Glad you've made it…" she said as soon as she held the phone to her ear.

 _'What happened? Are you alright?'_ she heard the voice at the other end ask. He sounded a little tired, maybe even annoyed, but not by her.

Blinking away a few tears, she nodded with a sigh, as if he could see her through some mind trick. "…Been better, but I survived. I always do – that's the only thing that matters. As long as we're alive, it could always be worse."

"Who's that?" Yao asked, rising a suspicious brow at Caterina, but the teen ignored him.

"I'm busy… But maybe in the evening I can find a few hours. Either then, or tomorrow, if you say you're feeling fine," she continued as the King took the boy by his side.

"Her boyfriend, but she doesn't like to say it. Keep quiet about this subject," the man explained. "Loosen up that belt one size and hide the gun there. If anything goes wrong, aim for the head – don't take any chances. It's hard aiming for the heart when you have no experience, so go for the bigger target. Understood?"

Yao nodded. "Got it. But why doesn't she want to talk about him? Girls and women never shut up about their boyfriends and lovers. They say the strangest things when they talk to each other or when someone asks about it."

The King shrugged. "No idea… She just hates the topic. Be careful with the gun. There's always a chance it will discharge when you don't want it. Don't hit it and don't lean on it."

"Right," the boy agreed. "You've said that four times before."

With just a word, Yao proved once again his memory was much more accurate than his own. The King was terrified the child might one day turn against him, just like Noburu turned against the Dragon, abandoned the name given to him by their caretaker and proclaimed himself independent. For a moment, he thought about it and the cold chill of anticipation froze his spine. What would he do if Yao decided to do the same one day, considering himself superior to him? The King already saw the boy almost like a son, meaning he wouldn't be capable of killing him in the future if that day ever came. On the other hand, the man was disgusted that he had even dared to think about such things. Even so, it was a possibility that the Dragon should have anticipated for years… Could it be the reason why he fell?

"Sir!" Yao's voice eventually pulled him out of his own thoughts as the King jumped and looked at the boy. "It's already a quarter to eleven. We should go, if we want to make it in time. What's wrong? Are you worried about something? You didn't seem to hear me before."

Surprised, the man turned to Caterina, who shrugged and threw him a half smile. She was trying to look amused, but it was all a charade. "…He's right, you know?"

Nodding, the King looked over the table. "Right. I'll take my keys and-"

"I already have 'em," Yao smiled, keeping the car keys in front of himself and looking at the King through the ring. "Let's hurry."

By midnight, the King had received the sum of money promised in one of his bank accounts. Changing his clothes and looking more like a street rat than a rich man, he and Yao took a boat for China. He already knew there was a possibility he wouldn't succeed, but he still had to try claiming back his power in the country before someone else did.

Caterina received her room that evening, but didn't spend more than a couple of minutes there. She walked out as soon as Mr. Ooi left her alone, ordering the guards to remain at their positions as if she had any real power. Light called her over and she couldn't tell from his voice how much was real sickness and how much was pretend – an excuse meant to make her feel restless and guilty if she even thought of turning it down.

By evening, Kira knew for certain that the Dragon was dead. The news confirmed it, even if it was still a hot topic for debate and the investigation had just began. All that he needed to hear was that the one person in the world that Caterina obeyed was out of the picture. He knew he couldn't have competed with the Dragon, though he tried anyway. Now was his chance to make use of everything he initiated but didn't finish before.

He heard the doorbell ringing and his sister running to the door. _'I've got it!'_ she called back to their mother, probably. Playing sicker than he really felt, Light waited for another few moments before opening the door and looking down from the top of the stairs. Caterina was just walking in.

"Are you sure he did? He said he's sick," Sayu asked, watching the stranger suspiciously.

Caterina nodded with a superior smile on her face. "Of course. That's the only reason I didn't call him over."

"MOM?!" the girl called, trying to block the stranger's way.

"Sayu, it's fine. I wanted to see her," Light stepped into their conversation. "Be more polite with our guest."

Caterina nodded towards Light. "You should listen to your brother. From what I know, you still have some catching up to do before you can argue with him."

Frowning, the girl stepped aside. "I don't like your girlfriend."

Before Light could intervene, Caterina pet her on the head. "Really? I'm so sorry. From what Light said, I thought you admired me, but it seems you only admired the image of me that my mother tried to present and sell. By the way, if you ever want to go backstage at a fashion show, give me a call. I'll see what can be arranged." Caterina took off her shoes and was already up the first few steps.

Sayu watched her with wide eyes, conflicted and confused, amazed but still angry from before. "…She even walks like a model. That's so unfair!" she whined in a low voice. "And I just got burned!"

Pouting, the brown-haired girl dragged her feet back into the living room. "Mom?"

The woman was doing the dishes after dinner. "Yes, dear?"

"Do you know Light's girlfriend?" the girl sat at the table and leaned on her elbow. "I mean, do you know her for real, or just from what he's saying? 'Cause she doesn't seem very nice."

"What are you saying? She seems nice enough."

Sayu sighed. "Yeah, well, Light's not gonna talk badly of her, but… Oh, never mind!" Sayu let her head fall over her hand on the table.

"What's the matter?" the mother asked as she began drying the dishes.

"She seems this stuck-up little…! She's like every shrew in the movies. Walking like she owns the place the first time she comes over and pets me on the head like I'm a dog or something!" Sayu lifted her head, looking at her mother and waiting for a reaction.

"…Well, she does come from the West, right? Westerners are more relaxed than us, they don't necessarily do it on purpose, even if they can be rude sometimes." The woman smiled. "Let's give her a chance. If Light likes her, she can't be the way you described her."

The girl frowned. "I don't think so. And I bet dad doesn't agree with you. I mean, she's the reason my brother nearly got himself killed, playing hero and all that."

Sighing heavily, the woman put the dishes back. "…I don't think it was her fault. Besides, the girl is an orphan. Try not to bring up this subject when she's around."

Sayu bit her lip in guilt and looked away. "I guess… But did she at least tell anyone she was coming over? I'm wearing sweatpants."

"Light mentioned it before dinner. I think you were in the bathroom." Slightly amused, the woman looked at her daughter's clothes. "What's wrong with sweatpants?"

"There's this guy who's really big in fashion and he says sweatpants are a sign you failed at life. Like, if your life is a disaster, you've bought yourself some sweatpants because you've got nowhere to be in public so it doesn't matter."

"I doubt ordinary people see it the same way," her mother laughed.

"Well, she does! She was raised by a designer, of course she's going to judge by stupid rules like this one," Sayu pointed out.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by the beta **AbandonedSock** , as always._

 _The next one's going to be hot~ If you ship Light with Caterina (which I will assume you do by now), they will be in the spotlight for an entire chapter. Also, I'll make my attempt to resurrect an abandoned story for the Shaman King fandom, once again focused on the bad guy trying to create a better world through blood and ashes. **Building Paradise** will also pick on different probems of the modern world, but I will try a different approach, better fit for the younger reader. It will be a more relaxing, peaceful read, though still getting the message out there. If you know the fandom, please follow that story as well. _

_If you're wondering where L is , he is currently getting reports on Kira's crimes. Also, just to ensure the element of suspense and make sure there will be a few very L-ish scenes in the next few chapters, I will ask someone to help me with a small collaboration project. That someone could even be you! SURPRISE! Just leave a review stating that you want to participate and your top 3 favorite characters (from Death Note or from this story)._


	36. XXXV - Say it!

_XXXV – Say it!_

* * *

Ryuk watched the little exchange of words at the door with interest. Human females were strangely satisfying to watch in the middle of an argument, making such interesting references he sometimes spent hours trying to understand. However, the most exciting part was when the auburn-haired girl walked into the room and Light closed the door after himself.

 _'Are you gonna tell her, Light?'_ he asked, trying to guess why he had called her over.

"Are you feeling any better?" the girl asked him, trying to hide the feeling of guilt. "If it wasn't for me…"

Light hushed her and wrapped his arms around her shoulders. "Don't talk like that. I'd do it again, I don't care… I'm sorry I couldn't do more." At that moment, not even he could tell for sure which side of him was talking and how much of his words was a lie. There was some truth there, for certain. "I'm sorry I couldn't help him…"

Her hands clung to his shirt and she held him closer for a moment, only to take a step back and let go. "It wasn't your job to do that. There were others who should have prevented this, others who will pay for what happened…" Her eyes were dark and glossy, her muscles stiff, but she was fighting the weakness and the wish to surrender with every breath.

"I could help you…" Light offered. He felt like a predator again, like he did whenever he caught her all alone in the apartment, with her back against some wall or window and his hands pinning hers up like chains. "Before you turn it down, think about this. They're bad people, right? They're criminals."

She looked at him for a long moment, trying to figure out his intention. "Of course they are. So, what? Since when is this so relevant?"

Taking a deep breath in, Light approached her again. "I couldn't tell your father, but there is nothing I despise more than criminals…" He walked past her and towards the window. "Look. Wherever the city lights don't reach, there could be a murderer, a thief, a drug dealer, a rapist, hiding in the shadows like a spider, waiting for their next victim to come close enough."

"So…?" Caterina asked. She sounded bored, indifferent. "It's happened ever since the dawn of civilization. It's human nature. Violence will never disappear from the world."

Light turned around and opened up his arms. "Then kill me!"

Widening her eyes, Caterina froze on the spot. "…What?"

"Kill me!" he ordered her again. "Come on. If violence is so natural, kill me!"

Shocked, the Italian backed away, trembling and shaking her head. The image of that blonde watching her as she suffocated, as the cable around her neck kept tightening and her face kept turning a tint of purple… that image was flashing before her eyes as she saw Light standing there, with the street lights behind him and his face darkened. He couldn't be serious, but he didn't look like he was joking. "…No! Are you nuts?! I can't do that! Why the hell would you ask me to do that?!"

"Exactly! …See?" Light said, walking towards her and holding her hands. "You can't, because you're not a criminal." He laced his fingers with hers, slowly pulling her closer. "Violence isn't something natural, but it happens so often these days it leaves the illusion that it was. But it doesn't have to be that way…"

Caterina looked away. "There's no other way. Natural or not, truth is it happens. We can't control it and it's a vicious circle." She unlaced their hands and turned to the side. "Violence makes people want to respond with more violence. I know… Because my father was murdered and I want to watch his murderers burn alive like rats, I want to hear them screaming in agony, to see the flesh melting off their bones! It makes me cringe, but I want to see them pay for what they've done."

"I can help you with that," Kira whispered, pulling her closer and wrapping his arms around her. "All I need from you is a list of names, each matched with a photograph."

Caterina looked up at him and saw his eyes were dark, gleaming with a hint of evil. The last time she saw those eyes, he nearly pushed her through the window, pressing her between the glass and his body and holding her hands so tightly it left a faded bruise. "Light… What's wrong with you? I've seen that look before. What are you gonna do?"

Kira looked down with the smirk of a maniac. "Exactly what you want me to do. But first… give me what I asked for."

"Why? Are you a hit man in your spare time?" she mocked him, trying to get him to speak.

But Kira threw her on the bed and crawled on top of her, covering her mouth with his hand. "I need you to be quiet, do you hear me?" he asked through his teeth. "Nobody else needs to hear this," Light breathed by her ear and reached underneath the corner of his pillow where he had previously hidden the Death Note. "But before that… I want to know, does it hurt to know your entire family had been murdered?" he asked with the same smirk from before, his eyes glossy with a kind of darkness that Caterina recognized from before. However, now it was several times worse than before the yacht vacation.

The Italian froze for a moment, waiting to see what was he going to do. Frowning as she remembered the sight of the yacht in the middle of a night so black, she couldn't tell apart the waves from the clouds. She remembered the small wooden house and the bullets falling over it like rain. She remembered the door she was too afraid to open and the flight of stairs she didn't dare climb down, the sound of blood spilling on the floor and of a man gasping for air.

"Because I have the power to make it go away," Light purred against her neck. "I have the power… to avenge both of them. And not only them – I have the power to prevent this from happening ever again." He looked into her green eyes and saw the hurt she would never admit out loud. "And now, I'm going to share it with you. Do you trust me?" he asked in a low voice. "Because I need to know that I can trust you to prevent this power from falling into the wrong hands. I need to know that you will never speak about this…"

Caterina felt her heart trembling in expectation. She felt like she was talking to the devil and so, she nodded quietly. Slowly at first, she breathed in and looked him in those dark brown eyes. For a moment, she thought she could see them glowing with a spark of red like the eyes of demons were described. "I won't," she mumbled into his hand.

Grinning, Light pressed his hand over her mouth a little firmer than before. "Are you ready…? Remember – quiet," he repeated again as he set the notebook in her hand.

The girl's eyes widened in shock as she breathed in through her nose, jolting underneath Light and trying to back away from the horrifying thing floating behind him. Her hand held his, trying to push it away from her mouth.

 _'Hi,'_ the creature said with a wide grin, bearing its shark-like teeth.

"Don't scream. I will explain," Light said as he felt her nails digging into his hand. Before he could see it coming however, Caterina had slapped him over the face, pushing him off at the same time.

"Cut the crap already. I'm not screaming, but you better start talking." The Italian reached for the small gun she had hidden in the back pocket of her jeans, covered by her long shirt.

Grinning, Light held his cheek for a moment. "…Remind me to tie your hands next time. At least I could see one of two coming." Holding up her gun, he put it in a drawer of his desk and turned the key, throwing it in a can of pens and pencils.

Rolling her eyes, Caterina breathed through her nose in amusement and annoyance. "You've got to be kidding me… Since when are you trying to be a step ahead of me?" she asked, snapping out of the state in which her memories always seemed to put her.

"Since I've wanted you by my side." The murderous look was back on his face as he approached her again. Just like he expected, the girl didn't back away. Instead, she watched him with a conflicted look, trying to read him and failing. "What you just touched… Take a look," he nodded towards the notebook.

Without taking her eyes off him in anticipation, Caterina searched on the bed for the black notebook and when she reached it, she quickly dropped her focus on the silvery title. "Death Note?"

 _'Open it,'_ the shinigami said with the same grin on his ghostly face. _'It has instructions.'_

"For real?" Caterina obeyed, opening the notebook and skimming the rules. A moment later, she turned a few pages and found the already enormous list of names. Reading each, she remembered those from the news reports her father used to watch. "These are… They're all dead. You're…!" Gasping, her eyes widened and she dropped the notebook on the bed.

"That's right," Kira grinned, standing beside his bed. Leaning on one knee, he quickly got a hold of her neck. "All I need is the face and the name of the victim, Caterina Rosa…"

The girl grinned, looking down at their bodies. "Are you threatening me? Because I'll threaten your heir if you don't get off me this second."

"From this moment, let's do this together," Light said, ignoring her returned threat. "I have no interest to get rid of you."

"Yet," she continued.

"Play your cards right and that time may never come. I want you more alive than dead."

Caterina took out a small knife hidden in the cuff of her jeans and held it to his temple. "Unless you let me breathe, I'll carve your eyes out and you'll lose your power, Kira."

Chuckling, Light threw himself on his back beside her, his head hanging off the bed. He looked outside the window for a moment. "You wouldn't, and we both know this. You couldn't kill me a minute ago, you won't do it now."

Caterina laughed quietly to herself. "So, this is what Padre had seen… He never liked you, Light. He never told me why, just that he had seen enough people in his life to tell a rotten heart apart from the crowd."

Ryuk began laughing. _'Rotten? That's an interesting way to say it.'_

Light looked up, frowning and pretending to be hurt. "Me?! But I'm not rotting! I'm the hand throwing away all these rotten apples from the basket before they can spoil the rest. I'm cleaning the world!"

Caterina held up the open notebook. "They're dead, Light. Dead. Not in a natural way, but killed. You're still a murderer, second only to god."

Sitting up, Light began to laugh, throwing his head back. "You're joking. Me? Second? I AM god! I am the truest god this world will ever know!"

"You're insane," Caterina grinned. "But if you help me, I'll return the favor," she purred in a low voice as she leaned in his arms and traced the blade of the knife over the back of his neck.

"That, if you survive… love," he mumbled as he let his head hang over her shoulder.

Caterina grinned. "You wouldn't, and we both know this… Darling."

Kira moved his hand from her thigh to her back, playing with her hair before pulling her head back. "We'll find out eventually, but let's make a deal tonight… Are you on my side?"

Caterina pressed the knife against the back of his neck. "I thought we had already settled this."

"I want you to say it." It wouldn't be the first time she did that. Light could remember several occasions on which he thought he had her wrapped around his finger, right before he lost her. "Are you on my side… or are you against me?" he asked her again, leaning over and kissing her neck. A chill ran down his spine when he felt her pulse so fast and so close to the surface.

"You know, forty seconds are enough for me to kill you, darling…" Caterina mumbled with a grin. "I've got nothing to lose anymore… Or did you forget about that?" She tried to kick him in the chest.

Surprised, Light let go of her hair and instead got a hold of her foot and wrapped her legs around him. "Are you that impatient?"

"I'm out of here." Caterina was scared by what she saw in his eyes. Those were the same eyes she knew from the Snake - the eyes of pure evil, of murderous madness. She pressed down her heels into the mattress, jumping back and dragging her feet.

Light let her go, raising his hands in surrender, but the smirk on his face showed he was still in control. "Alright," he said, "But you lose your forty seconds, love."

Stopping a little distance from him, Caterina pursed her lips before returning the smirk. "You need me… You wouldn't do it. I know you wouldn't."

"Who knows?" Kira shrugged innocently. He could see the doubt in her eyes and in all honesty, Light couldn't be certain if his darker side meant nothing but to scare her or if Kira was actually considering the idea. "People do lots of unbelievable things when their hearts are broken."

"Does that mean we're together now?" Caterina smirked.

"I thought we had already settled that," he returned her words from before.

Standing up, Caterina kept watching him as she walked to his desk and searched through his pens. "I'm not gonna say it, you're not gonna say it… How do we solve this one?"

"Easy," Light grinned. "We're together. We have been for almost two years now, but if you need to hear it said in an official way, here it is. You're mine." Raising his eyebrows, he nodded towards her. "Your turn."

She could guess his intentions. This was obviously his darker side speaking, the one she found more and more frequently in control over his actions and words. She recognized his attempt of disarming her and fought back the feeling of desperation, as it was slowly crawling in the back of her mind. She could feel it creeping up her spine like a numb trembling, too subtle to be called a chill. Biting her lip and breathing in, the Italian did her best to claim control over her emotions, numbing everything dangerous. "Small problem, your holy highness…" Caterina mocked him just as she reached the key to his drawer. "This is far from being a fair deal."

"Sleeping with a god isn't something all the other pretty girls in the world get the chance to do," Light answered her on the same mocking tone she used. By this time, he knew her well enough to read her smallest gestures.

"Sorry, I'm an atheist," she grinned as she unlocked the drawer. In their little game, her gun and his eyes were like the kings on a chess board.

"Careful, love…" Light warned her. "One wrong move, and boom! We all burn in an explosion." When he saw Caterina raising an eyebrow, Kira jumped from his bed and rushed to open the drawer before she accidentally moved the fake bottom. "I might have a reason to lie right now, but believe me, I am not."

The girl smirked and decided to keep that information in mind. "Alright, I believe you." She reached for the gun, but so did Light, grabbing her hand and pulling her close again.

"My answer, Caterina…" he reminded her on a demanding tone. The amusement was gone from his face as he was watching her impatiently. "For the last time… Are you on my side, or are you against me?" Kira repeated slowly, emphasizing each word.

"I am…" she began, feeling her wrist slowly bruising in his hand and the blood struggling to flow through her veins. "…on my own side, which for now seems to be yours, too. Happy now, darling?"

Light grinned. "Not quite there yet, but close, Caterina." He closed the drawer again and leaned against it. "Never bring guns or weapons in my house again."

"Then never make me walk on the streets alone at night in jeans so tight I can't wear any underwear but lace," she threw it back and unwrapped his fingers from around her wrist one by one. "You've _asked_ me to bring a gun with me. I'm just looking out for myself – I always do."

Swallowing his own saliva and already imagining a scenario, Light let her free. "I didn't ask you to wear these jeans."

"But you like them. All of my jeans are this tight. I've seen the way you look at me when I wear 'em," she smirked. "Now that we've settled our two most important matters, who's this scarecrow again? I think I missed that part of your speech, the part where you explain this thing here."

 _'My name is Ryuk. I am a shinigami,'_ the creature introduced itself.

Light sighed and began explaining. He had no other way out of it. Either he tried to wrap it up nicely, or Ryuk will answer her questions and he won't have any control over it.

That evening, Caterina also got the chance to meet his father eventually and the first worry on her mind was to write him a list of people and their crimes. She had phone numbers or addresses, or at least some contacts that she guaranteed were going to lead the police chief to some of the most dangerous criminals in Japan.

"Why did you do that?" Light asked once they were back in his room. Aside from the list, the evening was a calm, ordinary one.

"The police will clean up my father's name. Why else?" she smiled in am almost innocent way. Her eyes were so tired, they gave her away, but Light didn't want to tease her about it. Instead, he picked on something else.

"Loyal beyond the grave…" Kira chuckled.

"Of course. Don't act like you didn't know already. I would take the devil head-on for Padre. Even now…" She tried to look fine, but it was obvious she was not. Sighing, Caterina sat on the edge of the bed as Light took the chair. "He… He was my world, and now…" she sighed, "I just don't know."

"Now," Light picked up from where she left, "I could be your world and you, mine. I never planned on ruling alone, and you're the only one I've considered for this."

Suspicious, she looked up at him. "What if you don't make it? What then?"

With a shrug, he raised his eyebrows. "Then… you will take over. I will protect you. I'll keep you by my side, always. In case I ever fail, you will take this mission further."

"Do you remember what I told you that day, when I returned after a year and you told me I'd changed?" she asked, playing with her hands. "Padre… was damaged, on all possible levels. His body was in constant pain, scarred and pushed beyond its limits. His mind was paranoid, constantly stressed, calculating, thinking ten steps ahead. His spirit was broken, he was barely holding onto his faith. One would think he was on top of the world, the closest to the ideal that emperors and dictators could only dream of achieving. He did all that, but the price he paid… Are you sure you want to do this?"

Light leaned forward with his elbows resting on his knees. "I know. But if we don't, then who will?! Think for a moment that this sort of power were to fall into the hands of an ordinary man. They would never accept the responsibility. But I can do it! I can change the world for the better. You said you're with me – then stand by me. We'll make it."

Standing up, she wrapped her arms around his head and he held her thighs. "We're both going to die for this. I just want to know it'll be worth it."

"It will. Trust me," he spoke against her abdomen. "Are you staying here tonight? It's already late."

"…It's better than the new place," she answered him on a flat tone.

"I can feel your enthusiasm," he chuckled, breathing hot air against her lower ribs. She could feel his breath through the fabric of her shirt and the coldness of the air in the room when he lifted his head.

"I feel caged. I hate it," she clarified with a weak smile. "I'm a bank account for my tutor, for sure."

"We can take care of it," Kira looked up at her. He saw her several years more mature than before. He suddenly remembered the way she shooed him away after almost strangling him with his tie, back when they were school mates and she was pretending to be dating other guys just to show him how replaceable he was. That playful arrogance and confidence seemed so faded after the bar incident, it almost made her a bit boring…

"Not yet. I might have a chance to control this situation. Besides, it's only until my next birthday. What we should worry about now are all of those people I sent the police after – if the police don't get them fast enough and all at once, we'll be in big trouble."

Light sighed and put on a tired grin. "You're in greater trouble in this room than we'll ever be in front of those vermin," he purred. All of that chit-chat was not going to solve any real problem. Truth was, it was getting late and they were both tired. Not as much physically, but their minds were stressed, over thinking, running in circles trying to outsmart each other and getting them nowhere. "Ryuk, get out of here before I put you on an apple-free diet."

 _'Hah? Why? What did I do?'_ the shinigami asked, confused to the heavens and back. Light acted strange when that other girl was around.

"Why are you still here?" he asked on a demanding voice as he picked Caterina up and set her on the bed. The shinigami immediately disappeared, even if he didn't really understand why they suddenly seemed bothered by his presence.

Caterina allowed him to lie her down, giving up her own will in exchange for a little affection and an image that she thought she'd never see. In the end Light wasn't a god. He wasn't the evil murderer some claimed that Kira should be, either. He was only an ordinary young man, perhaps smarter than others or more sensitive than most, but definitely human. Before falling asleep, she looked at Light for a long moment. Perhaps that was the truest expression of being human… She had finally seen him vulnerable.

The next day, Sayu was surprised to see the girl from last night walking out of Light's room. Her auburn hair was a mess of curls and waves and she was wearing one of Light's shirts like a mini dress, with the sleeves tied over her chest to hold it in place. She was yawning, barely keeping her eyes open, walking around barefoot.

"Hi, morning…" she mumbled, going through the living room and into the kitchen. "Ah, do you have a… coffee machine or something like that?" she asked once she remembered she had no idea about Light's kitchen.

"It was morning when our father left for work. It's almost lunch time now," Sayu responded. She was wearing her newest skirt and a perfectly matched top from the recent fall collection. Actually, it was from a small brand known for copying most of the prestigious, super expensive designer clothes presented through the media. In other words, her clothes were fakes – but so true to the originals, it took a trained eye to see it. "What exactly are you wearing?"

Caterina sighed. "Make me some coffee or answer my question. I could go on the street in this shirt and heels and girls would copy me in an instant." She stopped to yawn again. "If girls thought for themselves instead of copying looks, the fashion industry would be dead in one season."

Sayu looked down at herself. She was wearing what her favorite lead singer wore last time she had been seen. "The coffee machine is in front of you. There's coffee in the cupboard above, second shelf, next to the sugar jar. There's milk in the fridge, on the door. Make your own coffee."

Caterina nodded and soon enough, the whole kitchen smelled of freshly brewed coffee. She heated up some milk in a pot and gathered the foam, setting it in her cup with a small spoon. Sayu watched her carefully. "How come you're still here?"

Caterina sipped her coffee and went to curl on the armchair. "Am I not welcomed?"

The brown-haired girl was watching a TV show revolving around teenagers with their drama-filled high school lives. "I didn't say that," Sayu immediately defended herself. "Did you, um… You know…"

Still not fully awake, Caterina looked half amused, half asleep as she chuckled and sipped some more of her coffee. "That's none of your business. But just for the record, a girl and a boy can share the bed and still not do it every time. The media doesn't paint it this way, but you should know."

"But I don't get it. What did you ever see in him? I mean, he's a nerd and a wannabe pimp." Sayu wrinkled her nose.

"…He's not that bad. It's hard to find intelligent people these days. This thing is to blame;" Caterina pointed towards the TV, "it makes people dumber. Why read when you can watch a movie? Why study when you can watch twenty shows at once? Then, there's the media selling fake values and manipulating people. It's rare to see someone thinking for themselves, but once you do this, you don't want to be with a guy who doesn't."

Sayu remained in thought for a long moment. "So, then… How do you get along with people? Everyone's watching these shows – it's the only topic when we talk during breaks."

"Then look for people smarter than you. Find something you like learning about. Do something that will help you get along with the few independent thinkers out there. The rest don't matter." Caterina could see the other girl deeply affected by her words, but didn't care to say it any other way. Why soften her words? The world was anything but soft.

"…Where's Light?" she asked after a while. It was odd not to see her brother up until this hour.

"I convinced him to sleep a bit more. We stayed up until late last night, talking. The people I told your father about worry both of us, since we're now together…" Caterina sighed. "Even if we were to break up, because of what he did that nearly got him killed, he's a possible target too."

Sayu frowned, turning to look at her. "You mean… it wasn't you who got him into this?"

"Why would I?" Caterina returned the question. She went to refill her cup of coffee and reheat the milk to boiling temperature. "If you love someone, you would rather tell them to stay away from you when you know you're a target. That's what we discussed when we met, right before I was taken."

"Well… yeah, it makes sense, but… why are you targets?" the girl asked.

Caterina smiled bitterly. "Don't bother your mind with this. We'll be fine… If we keep working with your father, I have the material means to support any investigation. We'll be alright."

Sayu got up and walked towards her. "You're different from what I expected."

"An arrogant celebrity, a spoiled little brat waiting to be served?" Caterina laughed. "I used to be like that, to some degree. I still love luxury and if I can have it, I will demand it, but it was obvious you won't make my coffee, for example. Besides, even if you did, it wouldn't be good enough for my taste. I'm not saying you can't make coffee, just that my standards are pretty high."

Curious about it, Sayu went and poured herself some coffee. "It's the same tasteless coffee dad drinks every morning. What's the big deal?" But once she tasted it, her eyes widened. "It's so bitter! And strong! How do you drink this and stay alive?!"

Caterina smirked. "Ya' know what they say… Go hard, or go home." Sipping some more of her second cup of coffee, she continued. "I used to split people in weak and strong. Look closely – there are two types of people in every situation. There are the latte and decaf drinkers, then there are the espresso and ristretto drinkers. There are the leaders and employers, the managers and directors, and then there are the workers and the volunteers. There are the manipulators, and there are the masses that let themselves be manipulated. There's a very sharp line dividing people into two categories, even from the point of view of coffee. The Americans, for example, drink their coffee so long and watered down, it's almost a type of tea. The Italians drink it so strong, it could give the inexperienced a heart attack. Many American companies are led by Italians who found weaker people than themselves and took the opportunity. I know…"

Sayu looked at her for a long moment. "Ordinary people don't think this way. I don't know anyone who does."

"Leaders do. They see other strong people around them and they must decide quickly if they are an associate or a possible threat. That's the world of my father… The world of politics, of risky affairs, of deals and corporations," the Italian sighed. She lifted the cup to her mouth again, but she only then noticed she had no more coffee in it. Caterina walked past Sayu and rinsed the cup before leaving it to dry.

"You didn't wash that properly," the girl pointed out.

"It's mine now. What's the point? I'll drink from it whenever I come here," Caterina explained. Just then, Light's mother returned home with a few bags and Sayu ran to help her. The Italian watched, surprised to see the two so close. Memories of her own mother came back as she felt her chest tightening and her heart stung by pain. She wanted to burst into tears, but instead she only gulped, breathed in deeply, and left the kitchen. "Good morning, madam. Please excuse me." She walked past the woman and her daughter, going upstairs and entering Light's room quietly.

Caterina sat on the empty bed, waiting. Ryuk was flying around her.

 _'Hey, what's with that face?'_ he asked from behind.

"Nothing… Just a moment of weakness. I can't allow it." She sighed, trying to calm down, but ended up by throwing herself back on the bed and covering her face. Angry, hot tears were running over her temples and wetting her hair. "…It's not fair," she whined. "It's not!"

 _'Huh?_ ' the shinigami looked at her in confusion. _'What's not fair? I don't get it.'_

Caterina sobbed a few times, throwing a pillow at Ryuk. "Get lost!" she demanded once she saw the pillow had passed right through the ghostly creature.

Light was just out of the shower when he heard the conflict between Caterina and Ryuk. Drying up and putting some pants on, he was surprised to see the young woman on his bed barely dressed and sobbing silently. When she heard him, she had turned her back on him and curled on her side, covering her face with one arm.

"Ryuk, leave us," he ordered the shinigami. He went to his closet and put on a plain t-shirt, looking at Caterina from time to time. She was very silent in her suffering. If it wasn't for her uneven breathing making her ribcage tremble every now and then, he might have thought she was sleeping.

Once the shinigami left, he sat beside her. Even if he didn't know what to expect, he set a hand on her shoulder. She looked at him with red eyes. In only a few minutes, she had stopped herself from crying… He wondered how many times had she done that before.

"Are you alright? What happened?" he asked her.

Sighing, Caterina dried her eyes with her hands. "…I guess I'm not used to being in a family. Don't worry, I'm fine now."

Light was confused for once. Was she lying, or was she telling the truth? He didn't know what to say, so he took her in his arms. Surprisingly though, she pushed him away.

"Light, I'm fine. You shouldn't have seen me like that, it's not how I am. I'll go wash my face." Caterina stood up and walked past him. Her legs were trembling slightly and her eyes were emptied of any emotion, but Light knew trying to make her admit to her weakness was a lost fight from the very start. Caterina was lying not only to him, but also to herself.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock**._

 _Also, this is the last chapter I'll publish without a review. I'll be waiting for reviews again because it seems that if I give up this condition occasionally, you stop reviewing altogether. Damn, I can't even motivate you to do that with one-shots or the chance to read chapters before they are published..._


	37. XXXVI - Let's Make a Deal

_XXXVI – Let's Make a Deal_

* * *

"Alright, let's start with the tip line reports," the chief of the National Police opened the topic of their meeting.

"Yes, sir!" someone immediately stood up. "Up to this point, we've received 3029 responses about the murders via telephone or e-mail. Most of these had been curious citizens or prank calls, but there are fourteen people who claim to either know Kira, or who have seen him. All fourteen accounts were followed up then and carefully documented; however, nobody could provide any information that wasn't already publicly available. And lastly, this week there were an additional twenty-one people who called in claiming to be Kira," one of the attendants of the meeting summarized as he kept his eyes on the numbers printed before him. He spoke loudly and clearly, trying to be as objective as possible, but he couldn't completely hold back a small sigh towards the end. In his mind, it made no sense for people to claim being a mass murderer wanted in every country across the globe. It was simply irrational!

Yagami cough in his fist. Aizawa, the one who was summarizing the report, continued. "We didn't want to rule anything out, so we followed the standard procedure and traded files for all twenty-one of them." As he listened, Yagami felt the same way. Obviously, Kira was not going to simply surrender. It was clear by then for everyone that their criminal or group of criminals had a target to reach before considering the option of surrendering themselves to the police.

"Uh-huh…" the chief nodded shortly. "Alright, onto the victim reports."

"Yes, sir!" another stood up as Aizawa immediately took his seat. "Upon further investigation, we have confirmed that information on the heart-attack victim was in fact publicly available in Japan immediately prior to their deaths." The man glanced towards the laptop set on a table in the back of the room. "Also, concerning L's request that we investigate the time of death for each victim, we found that most of them occurred between the hours of 4 pm. and 2 am. on the week days, local time, with 68% occurring between 8 pm. and 12 am. Weekends and holidays appear to be the exception of this rule, as the times of death vary much more widely than during the week. Also, during the past week, the times of death appear to be scattered around between random hours, varying between 8 am. and 3 am., sometimes 4 am. Yesterday, the times of death began to resemble the patterns observed during the weekends, but with a delay from the usual start a little over 8 am. to an unusual 11 a.m. start."

 _'That information is extremely relevant for us,'_ the robotic voice of L said through the speakers of the laptop. _'I'd suggest that, given the times of death, our suspect could very well be a student.'_ The assumption immediately drew Yagami's attention. _'Based on the fact that Kira's only killing criminals, I think it's safe to assume that he's driven by a very idealistic notion of justice. It's highly possible he may even be inspired to be some sort of god figure. Could even be an individual with a very challenged sense of right and wrong. Of course, this is merely speculation at this point, but still I recommend you re-examine any assumptions you've made as to whether or not our suspect could be a student. We must consider every possibility – only that is the short switch to finding and arresting Kira. Please, continue with your report.'_

The chief suddenly found himself the center of attention again as he shook off the worry from his mind. "Uh, right. Does anyone else have something they'd like to add?"

One of the youngest policemen raised his hand with doubt. "Uh, yes, sir…!"

"What is it, Matsuda?" the chief asked him, sounding more like an annoyed teacher for a moment.

"Um…" he began, standing up, "Well, I'm not saying this as to support Kira, or to confirm the murders, but…" Matsuda lowered his eyes. "In the last few days, throughout the world, but especially here, in Japan, we've observed a dramatic decrease in the number of violent crimes committed." The moment he was done, everyone around him began whispering and murmuring, all frowning at each other.

"Well, I suppose it makes sense," Yagami tried to overcome the tensioned moment, "We've suspected something like that would happen. Anything else?"

Matsuda sat down. "No…"

"Well, that about sums up our report for today," the chief said with a sigh. "L?"

 _'Thank you, everyone. I feel we are one step closer to finding Kira. Before I go, I'm afraid I have one additional request to make,'_ L addressed the policemen through the speakers. _'This is directed to the teams investigating the victims, TV news and the internet. I would like you to go back and take a close look at the exact way in which the victims' identities were made public. Be as thorough as possible. In particular, I want to know if the photos of the victims were made available to the public in Japan. I'll leave it to you.'_

In the meantime, someone was knocking hard on the chief's door. The doorbell was ringing constantly in a very annoying way. Caterina and Light were just beginning to plan their moves in order for Caterina to take over the family fortune in secret and without drawing much attention. As usual, Sayu ran to answer the door.

"Coming, coming! Just a moment!" she called as the bell kept ringing. When she eventually reached the door, two men in black suits and with ridiculously dark sunglasses stepped inside.

"We had been sent to escort miss Amadeo," one of them spoke firmly, nearly knocking Sayu off her feet.

"Hey! Wait up! Who are you? Who sent you?" the girl began calling.

Ryuk drew the teenagers' attention. _'That's interesting… Two escorts! Do you really need them?'_

"What escorts?" Light eyed her suspiciously. "I don't want my father's name stained."

Caterina fumed. "Don't give me that look! I didn't call them!" Annoyed, she stood up from the chair at his desk and left Light to hide the notebook. Caterina walked out of the room and looked down. "Enough of this. I left clear instructions not to be followed. What does this even mean?"

The two stood at the end of the stairs, straight and still like statues. "We had been sent by Mr. Ooi to escort-"

Caterina rolled her eyes. "I already figured that. A phone call would have done it in a way that doesn't scare the life out of people. Can't I visit someone for more than an hour? Get out! Wait for me at the door. Move it!"

The two seemed to be looking at each other. Eventually, they obeyed, but only after giving her a time limit. "Five minutes, miss."

"This is ridiculous," she mumbled. Sighing, she returned into Light's room and gathered her phone and her gun. "What do we do now?"

Light was still eyeing her strangely. "I will manage the police and you, your tutor's gorillas. I don't want scenes like this one ever happening again in my house. My father is the chief of the National Police Force - I can't afford the risk!"

Caterina nodded. "Alright, I get it! Well, if it bothers you so much, you can always try to pretend we never even met. Hopefully, my father's enemies will forget about your existence as well, Kira."

"Are you threatening me?!" Kira asked through his teeth, aware they could be easily overheard.

"Not me, sweetheart. Them." Just as she was about to leave, Light caught her wrist.

"You will keep quiet about me," he demanded.

"Here's your new deadline. Make up your mind by midnight. I already said I'm with you, but this can't work if it's one-sided. I need help too, dear. For a wannabe genius, you're acting like an idiot. Get the hell out of my way before they drag me out like a convict!" Pushing him away, Caterina made her way down the stairs in a rush and threw Sayu a smile.

"…Who are you?" the girl fearfully asked.

"Don't worry, you've got nothing to fear. My tutor is a bit… overprotective," she tried to reassure her as she put her shoes on and grabbed her coat. "I will take care of this, alright? Bye!"

Confused and still a little scared, Sayu looked towards Light. Her brother was leaning against the frame of his door. "What was that just now?"

Sighing deeply, Light frowned. "I wish I knew. Don't tell father about this yet, I need to get the details first."

"So you want me to cover her up?! The last time you tried that you nearly died. Hell no!"

"Watch it," Light warned her. "He won't be too happy to hear you talking like that. Leave the matter to me. I'll handle it better than you."

"Light?" their mother called. "Aren't you and your girlfriend hungry?"

"She left already, mom!" Sayu called back. "You owe me for this one," she whispered towards Light.

"Math again?" he raised an eyebrow, well aware of his sister's very basic level of understanding anything involving numbers.

Looking away, she eventually nodded. "…I have another test next week. I did what you said and I think I kind of get it… a little. Well, I tried! For real, this time! But I'm not sure, you know?"

Meanwhile, Caterina was sitting in the back of the car, glaring at the bodyguards and refusing to answer her phone. Eventually, one of them answered his, talking to the secretary.

"She wants to speak with you," the man addressed her.

"No," came the short answer.

"She refused." The man sighed as he listened to the secretary. He looked at Caterina over his shoulder, but she kept glaring. "Don't make this hard on all of us. Answer her questions."

"No," the teenager repeated for the tenth time during the short drive. "No! Whatever she asks, the answer is no." Annoyed, she spun her pointer around.

Sighing, the bodyguard shook his head and turned to look ahead. "What are we gonna tell him when we get back?" he asked the driver.

His colleague seemed to have no emotional response. "Exactly what happened." He seemed confident there will be no negative consequences.

"What about the house?" the bodyguard in the passenger seat asked again.

"The usual," the other replied on the same flat tone.

Caterina leaned forward and leaned with her elbows over the shoulders of the driver's seat. "Are you dead, or nuts?"

The driver took a sudden turn, trying to make her lose balance. "Off," he commanded.

Suddenly, Caterina had her hands around the man's neck. "No. What are you going to do about it? Mm…?" she hummed.

"I apologize, I can't allow this to go any further," the other bodyguard said as he pressed a nerve on the girl's wrist, numbing her hand and her arm up to the elbow. "Please."

Sighing, Caterina seemed to draw back. She unwrapped her fingers from the driver's neck, only to snap back at the second bodyguard and almost stabbing his hand with the knife she had on her. Its blade was shorter than her fingers, but looked sharp enough to cause some damage.

Acting almost instinctively, the bodyguard caught her fist and stopped her. Shocked, he looked at the teenager with wide, brown eyes.

Pouting, Caterina eventually leaned back into her seat. "You can let go now."

"Same here," the man said. He was trying to take her knife away from her.

"I have a gun, anyway. May it stab you in your side."

The driver parked in the back of the hotel. "I don't get paid enough for this bullshit, I swear…" he growled under his breath as he stopped the engine and took off.

"You can always quit; you know?" Caterina suggested. "Go on a vacation, move someplace exotic, get with a woman of a different race, maybe get a smoke… Just to relax, if you know what I mean."

The other bodyguard sighed as he took off as well and opened the door of the car for her. "May I suggest not to-?"

"No," Carterina repeated the only answer she seemed to had programmed into her mind that evening. Her mouth was smiling brighter than her mother used to, but her eyes were glaring flaming arrows. "Last time I checked, you were paid to ensure I'm safe, not to suggest anything. So…" She pretended to be zipping his lips, throwing away the imaginary key. "Shall we? The devil forbid we let this wannabe emperor wait for too long."

After they looked at each other – the driver just about to burst with anger and his partner obviously overwhelmed by the situation – the three of them eventually walked inside the building. Caterina walked proudly, but she was very aware of her situation.

Declaring war against her legal tutor now was unnecessary and more to her disadvantage rather than his. Although very offended by his radical action, she kept thinking of a way in which she could reach a compromise. The Italian was stressed mostly because she had never met the man before her father's death – naturally, negotiating sensitive matters with a suspicious stranger was not her favorite way to pass some time.

Once the trio reached a certain door, looking just like every other on the corridor, the bodyguards stopped and took their place on each side of the door. Caterina stopped as well, for a moment. "What? Are you guard dogs or something?"

The younger bodyguard sighed and knocked on the door for her. He opened it and invited her in without a word and without looking inside.

Rolling her eyes, Caterina stepped inside confidently. She saw Mr. Ooi for the first time in person, standing by a tall window and smoking a cigar. His bald head reminded her of a giant egg, but it seemed to fit his even more gigantic body. The Italian guessed she would probably feel like a five year old if she dared approach him.

"Where were you last night?" he asked on a calm, even tone.

Caterina couldn't tell if he was really interested or if he was trying to reach a different topic. "At a friend. What was that ridiculous force demonstration this morning?"

"I ask, you answer," he quickly clarified. "Your father mentioned that several months ago. Your friend is the son of the National Police Chief, that Yagami. He was against this relationship of yours and I am, too. Do you know why?"

She frowned. Since when her father so open about her love life? "My father kept to himself. I doubt he discussed my problems with you, sir."

"So you don't. First, he is from the lower social class of people who will eventually need to get a job, work for us, on what salary we pay them so they can give us the money back every time they pay their bills. Take it from men who saw it happen – he wants your father's fortune. That includes at least the money, but he may be after the notoriety, the businesses and the connections as well."

With an indifferent little smirk, she shrugged. "So? He's got the brain to make it double."

The man uncrossed his arms from his chest and shrugged. "It will leave you in the same posture of Anastasia." Before she could protest, Ooi continued. "You will lose all trust from your father's partners if word gets out you're dating the son of the most despised policeman in the country. He can't get rid of that title, even if you two were to marry."

After a moment, Caterina nodded. "He can always swear loyalty. If he kisses the ring of one of Padre's closest associates, he can stand a chance."

"No one will accept him around," Ooi assured her. "The Chinese man is already seen as a joke, but not even he would accept your friend."

Caterina sighed and rolled her eyes. "Why? Do you think he's weak? Do you take him for the typical nerd, following rules and conventions like his hero does? Do you think he's some sort of angel, fallen off the wall of some church?"

"He cannot be trusted. Remember this – that young man is only using you. All men do, women too occasionally. Take the advice and end your little game while you can." The man put out his cigar and looked at her through his glasses. His small eyes were waiting to see a change in Caterina, but she only chuckled.

"...You don't know me. He could be the devil – I would still follow him. He's exciting, always surprising – he's the only guy I can't read. His mind is sharp like a newly cut diamond. His blood burns with passion, with that cocktail of ambition, recklessness, and a dose of madness." Caterina raised his eyebrows and smirked. "He's the closest to how I've always imagined Padre at our age."

Frowning, Ooi interrupted her. "What is this goal he is so determined to reach?"

"His own empire – my man wants to rule the world and change it by his vision," she quickly answered. "I didn't question Padre for his methods and I won't question him. I don't care if he is evil as long as he's good to me. He is free to step over whoever he wants, as long as we share the throne."

Ooi threw her a faint, ironic smile. "You will both go down in flames. If it's the devil you want so badly, you have my permission… but you won't waste the fortune on this teenage rebellion of yours."

Caterina grinned. "Seriously? Well, then…" she shrugged. "I am taking my accounts and moving on my own. Mr. Ooi, I'd say it was a pleasure, but I'm rather disappointed. Please, enjoy your last months."

The man gritted his teeth. "Don't you dare threaten me…"

Caterina waved her hand playfully. "Perhaps it would be a good idea to see a cardiologist. Bye-bye now!" Turning around, she walked out with her hands forward, pushing the door open and nearly hitting one of the bodyguards with it. She went straight to her room and began packing the few things she had left.

By the time she was done, so were Light and Sayu with her homework. Ryuk was bored out of his mind, laying in Light's bed and holding his head with one hand. Light threw him a short glance before and he immediately remembered all of those jokes in the online social media, the ones labeled _'Paint me like one of your French girls'_. He hid his laughter with a sneeze, turning away from Sayu for a moment.

"Bless you!" she immediately said.

"Thanks… So, do you think you're ready to try a few on your own now?" he asked, trying to get her focus back. His little sister was usually easily distracted, which was most probably why she didn't get math in class.

"I guess so…" But before she even had the time to pick up a pen, the doorbell rang and Sayu jumped up from the chair as if it was on fire. "Sounds like dad's home! He's home really early today!" she giggled, running off.

"Hey…!" Light could only watch her as she left. "Why don't you at least try the last problem by yourself?"

"I will, but…" she smiled over her shoulder, "Maybe after dinner!"

Light sighed as he heard his sister already downstairs. "Yeah, right!" It wasn't the first time he heard that excuse and it probably won't be the last. They both knew Sayu will play too tired to study after dinner. Somehow, she was never too tired to sit on the phone with her girl friends for hours or watch some of her drama series.

As soon as Sayu was out of the room, Ryuk sat up. _'Helping your sister with her homework? You sure are relaxed…'_

In return, Light smiled. "Of course. If the police tried to come after me, I'm pretty confident I have something that will give me the advantage. Besides, it's good to know my sister won't say something uncomfortable that would ruin our dinner." Stepping out of his room, he greeted his father as the man was taking off his shoes. "Hey, glad you could join us for dinner. Are you hungry, dad?"

"Yea… It's been a long day," the man answered on a tired voice. He followed his son to the table, feeling just how tired he really was only when he sat down. After a few moments of silence, he decided to use the opportunity and catch up a little. "So, Light, how are your studies going?"

"Everything's okay, I guess," Light answered, trying to look tired.

Sayu was quite energetic, on the other hand. "Whatever! He's the top of his class! My big brother's a genius," she hurried up and spoiled him in front of their parents. Of course she would. It was to her advantage to keep her 'genius big brother' on her side.

Light knew. He only believed his mother when she claimed she was proud of him. His mother had no reason to brag about him, no interest to keep him by her side. But then, he noticed his father a little… absent-minded. "Is everything okay, dad? You look tired."

"Yea," the man agreed. "I'm not able to talk much about it, but this case that I'm working on now is really tough. There are many fake leads and the evidence is scarce. It takes a lot of time for little progress, and there's always the pressure of working on a murder case…" He sighed. The sooner they solved the case, the less people would die, but it wasn't simple to do so.

While Light was going to his room after dinner, Caterina was just leaving the hotel. She was furious, frustrated, and… confused. No, disoriented, rather. She had no idea who to call or where to go. The Italian looked through her phone, thinking who she might call and ask for such a favor. The King was definitely out of the equation – last time they spoke, he was going to try his luck on the American dream. Then, there was Namikawa – but she refused to see him while her father was alive. Then… Well, then there was her last ray of hope.

Biting her lip to blood, she finally stepped over her pride and crushed her ego, pressing the green button. It rang once, twice, until a squeaky voice yelled at the other end of the line. _'Misa-Misa here~!'_

Rolling her eyes and already feeling a headache coming, she breathed in and asked for what she needed. "Misa, just the person I've been missing lately…"

 _'You missed me? Really-really missed me?!'_ she gasped.

"Of course… Now if you don't mind me asking, there are no hot strippers in overly-sexualized cartoon character costumes over at your place, are there?"

Caterina could hear Misa hyperventilating at the other end of the line as she walked down the street. _'N-no, why do you ask? Are you coming over with-?'_

"To come over? Of course, if you insist!" Caterina cut her off with a grin.

 _'But I didn't ask you to, though Misa won't kick you out if-!'_

"Wonderful, my dear – just what I wanted to hear. I'll take a cab now, write down the number please. It's very important for later, darling." Caterina dictated her the series of the cab before getting in. "I'll be there in three minutes. Four, actually, if you count the time I'll be wasting with the elevator. Please don't greet me in a racy lacy outfit – that kind of welcoming is best kept for lovers only."

The cab driver was looking at her through the rear-view mirror. Caterina threw him a glare and fanned him with her hand. "Drive! Come on, start the engine and go. Straight forward, for now. I'll tell you as we go."

Confused, Misa listened to the tone that came once Caterina had hung up. Were they even friends? The Italians sure had strange ways to show their friendship. Grinning widely, she jumped from her bed, put on some tiny shorts and pulled a bit at her pigtails to make them tight again. Lying in bed could really ruin a perfectly symmetrical hairdo.

Before she even had time to clean up, the doorbell rang and she ran to open up. "Just a moment~!"

Caterina was just walking into the building when she saw someone with a gun in their hand leaning against Misa's door. The young woman took out her gun from her bag quietly, as she neared the oppressor.

Misa unlocked the door. The sound of the lock echoed through the otherwise empty hallway. Caterina had her gun pointed at the stranger as Misa opened the door wide, nearly jumping on the man with the hood hanging low over his eyes.

"Misa, down!" the Italian yelled, but the robber already caught Misa by the arm.

With her hand twisted and a gun to her temple, the blond was just about to cry. "What's this? Misa doesn't want to die! I'll give you money, just please don't hurt Misa or Katy!"

"Katy?" Caterina raised an eyebrow.

Panicked, the man's hand began to shake. "Stay back! I'll kill her, I swear! I-I'm not a murderer, but I will! I swear to god I'll blow her fucking brains out!"

"Please don't do it, Mr. Robber. You don't really want to, right?" Misa plead.

Already used to tense situations, Caterina could recognize the other one was an amateur. "Put the gun down and nobody's getting hurt."

"No!" he protested. "You let me walk out of here and step out of the way, or I'll kill you both!"

Misa froze, while Caterina rolled her eyes. She shot and the bullet stopped in the wall behind them, a few inches from the man's head. "Put your toy down, big boy. The next one's aimed at your left eye. You're a filthy piece of garbage for doing this, do you know? You're going nowhere before the police comes and arrests you. Now put the fucking gun down!"

Taking advantage of the man's shock, Misa slipped from his grip and ran inside her apartment. Uncovered and shaking, the man put his hands up and let the gun fall on the ground. Caterina smirked. It sounded like plastic.

Up in his room, Kira was smirking as well. He had just found a gold mine.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by the beta **AbandonedSock,** as always. _

_Also, thanks to **xLonelyDreamerx** , here's another chapter. So, the review rule is valid again. You may not realize it, but it does help me a lot to receive some sort of feedback. Follows and Favorites are very welcomed, but reviews are loved. I'll be waiting to hear from you soon._


	38. XXXVII - Confidential Information

_XXXVII – Confidential Information_

* * *

The shinigami sat on his bed, watching Kira working on the computer. _'Well, well… Daddy's files, aren't these? And that must be why you're so confident,'_ he grinned.

"That's right," Light answered him as he kept his eyes on the screen. "It's easy for me to hack into dad's computer on our home network, so I can copy the files I need without leaving a trace. This way, I can keep track of their investigation. Here we go…" he kept mumbling as he typed in the password.

Leaning back, Kira took his tea cup as he looked at the reports. "Well, isn't that interesting… Looks like the police are already beginning to suspect a student." He had accessed a database of all of his punished criminals, sorted by day and time of death. It immediately rang a bell.

Ryuk laughed. _'I guess that means you're in trouble!'_ He sounded more than a little amused to hear that.

Sipping some tea, Light set the cup down and began to recap… "If the cause of death is written within 40 seconds of writing the person's name, it will happen. If the cause of death is not specified, the person will simply die of a heart attack. After writing the cause of death, details of the death should be written in the next 6 minutes and 40 seconds. That sound right to you, Ryuk?"

The creature nodded, waiting for him to continue. _'So, what's your point?'_

"In other words, if I write _'heart attack'_ as the cause of death, then I should be able to write all the details, including the time of death, shouldn't I? Looks like I'll be able to provide you with more entertainment now…"

Just then, his phone began to ring. He picked up. "Did something happen?"

 _'Define '_ something _', darling…'_ she answered him with a sigh. _'First, let me say my tutor won't bother you again. In fact, he won't bother me, either.'_

Throwing Ryuk a scared look, Light had to make sure she hasn't done anything stupid. "What have you done?" He knew Caterina had a gun and a knife when she left.

 _'Nothing that would stain my hands, but… I'm not sure yet if it was my greatest mistake yet or the best thing I've ever done. I just broke it up with my tutor, so now I have a minuscule part of the money, no connections and… basically, nothing. I have nothing.'_

Caterina had to hold back her tears as she looked outside the window. She received her own room, but it was far from satisfying. "It kills me to know I'll have to make it with this little for a year… Light, are you still there?"

 _'Yes, I am. I was just thinking… How much do you have, exactly?'_

The Italian chuckled bitterly. "So that's it, huh? You really are after the money…"

 _'What?! No, of course not! But if you say you have nothing, then we're in it together. We have to find a way through this one year,'_ he quickly defended himself.

"…I have enough to live, but we can't afford to buy much, if you know what I mean. It's so uncomfortable, it's stressing me out!"

After a moment, Light spoke again. He sounded like he was calculating something. _'Where are you now? At the hotel?'_

"No. My mother helped a girl start her modeling career and then, Padre helped her with an apartment. I'm at her place. If you want me to stay at yours, don't even think about it. I can't burden your family like that and besides, your sister hates me." She went to sit on the bed.

 _'Then, here's the plan. Find a single room apartment to rent and calculate the rent for a year. If you gain any property, your father's enemies could find you easily. Properties tie you down and you can't afford to leave one behind.'_

Caterina nodded, as if he was able to see her. "I will… I just can't stand this girl, I have to get out of here. But there's something else. I found an amateur trying to rob her. She doesn't have much, so it could have been a coincidence, but at the same time, he was here right when I said I would."

It immediately drew Light's attention. _'What do you mean?'_

"I mean that I told this girl it will take me three minutes to reach her building and another one to take the elevator. The robber was there one minute afterwards, but I lied. I took five minutes to reach her building. There's a chance someone is listening to my phone and if that's the case, they know I'm here."

Light froze. It meant Caterina was in danger. _'Listen to me and get out of there right now!'_

"No. We need to meet, but I can't tell you when. I won't stay here long, but I have to, for now. I will need at least a couple of days to find a new place." Caterina had her hand on her gun. "Besides, if they come, I'll get them. But just so you know… Watch out for anything suspicious."

 _'Do you suspect anyone?'_ he asked.

"Not yet… But if they make a move, I will know for certain," Caterina spoke firmly, but her voice sounded tired. "Light? Please, be careful. As soon as we can, we need to talk." She hung up, keeping the warm cup of coffee in one hand and the gun on the other side. She turned on Misa's laptop and began searching for an apartment.

That night, Light began writing names in his Death Note. He scheduled their deaths one by the hour for the next two days. If the police thought they could predict the crimes, they were wrong. Thinking about it, perhaps he should have done this earlier – after all, patterns were the reason many criminals were caught.

Early in the morning, after taking a shower, Caterina left to see several apartments and hopefully, sign a contract. There was a new residential quarter in town with non-stop guard and a security system she was certain Light could break. These were a little bit more expensive than the average, but she was desperate for luxury and protection, above all. In the end, that was the most vital thing that money could still buy.

Kira kept an eye on the investigation, but he was certainly more relaxed than before. Being able to see the files whenever he pleased was a great advantage and he knew that. He even felt like taking a break and going out for a while, but when he tried to call Caterina, she wouldn't answer.

"Ryuk?" Light said with a smile as he set his papers in order. "Do you want a bag full of the biggest, juiciest apples on the market?"

Immediately, the apparently apathetic creature felt a rush of excitement. _'What do you want me to do?'_

"Go find Caterina and tell her to meet me… There is this new café in town, L'Etage. She will definitely love the atmosphere there. It's very European, kind of jazzy, almost festive. If all goes well, I'll give you the apples on our way back." Before he even finished, the shinigami was already out. Light smirked to himself. Ryuk was a lot like a dog when it came to basic behavior. It was so easy to get the creature to do whatever he asked, it reminded him of Pavlov's conditioning. In a way, it wasn't that different from Pavlov's experiments.

Almost half an hour later, Light received a call from a unknown number. "Yes, love?" He was certain it would be Caterina, but it was actually someone from his phone company.

 _'Excuse me, sir, good afternoon! Would you be interested in our holiday offer? We can offer you a free phone if you subscribe for another year,'_ a man spoke at the other end of the line.

Light laughed. "Sure, I'll pass by tomorrow or the day after." As he hung up, he began getting dressed for the occasion. Finally, things were going according to plan. He had a huge advantage and all he had to do now was help Caterina deal with her problems. Besides, it was December the 12th and the city was already covered in lights.

Christmas was not such an imported holiday there, but there were so many religions celebrating something during the last month of the year, it was hard to resist temptation. Commerce worldwide was flourishing like a cherry tree in spring, and it showed. The city was full of music, especially from people in a difficult time playing on the street. There were lights everywhere and special offers. Anyone had at least one thing to celebrate in December – the New Year. And, as always, the industries would all start the "holiday season" early.

Light had to admit, it was at least a little contagious, considering his situation. He even overheard people talking on the street about how much safer they felt, knowing that Kira was out there, doing his job. He almost felt like a secret Santa of sorts, delivering ease of mind and safety to all those innocent people.

He sat in the café with paintings of monuments from all over Europe, looking over the menu written in Japanese, English, Spanish and French. From what he could recall, the native Spanish speakers were more numerous than the native English speakers, so naturally, they expected others to know their language instead of learning another. As for the French… Well, everybody knew they had something against the British ever since the beginning of time – it didn't surprise anyone they wouldn't learn English to save their lives.

Ryuk eventually returned to him, already swallowing his own saliva. _'Light? When do I get my apples?'_

Light took out his phone and pretended to be talking to someone. "Yes. I'm not sure how long, mom. Sure, on our way back home."

The shinigami looked confused. _'What? Is that when I get the apples?'_

"Yes, of course," Light continued on his phone. "I'll call you later. Bye." He saw Caterina walking in, smiling brightly. "Looks like somebody's having a good day."

The girl chuckled and sat at his table. "I could say the same about you. So, what's up?"

"First, let's order something. It's cold today, isn't it?"

She nodded, her cheeks still red. "It is… This place reminds me so much of a café in Venice! How come I'd never paid attention to it before?" she sighed.

"I was betting on that, actually," he grinned. "Let's see… should I start with why it just got impossible for me to be caught, or with the latest progress of the investigation?"

Caterina threw him a look. "What do you mean, impossible to catch? Isn't… you know who… coming after you?"

Light shrugged. "Their main lead so far were the hours, the time of…" he nodded slowly, "Starting the night when you called, I began to schedule these throughout the day, so they no longer have a pattern."

Her eyes lit up. "Really? Why didn't you do that from the beginning?" When he shrugged, she waved her hand. "Never mind. It should be good as it is. But what about the investigation? How can you know of their progress?"

"Remember who dad is?" He waited for an approval and once she nodded, he continued. "I can break into his computer whenever I want, undetected. I know everything they know." Kira smiled proudly.

"Okay, now it's my turn. So first, I changed my phone number and I have two others prepared for emergencies. I have a new gun and an alias, thanks to the King."

Light raised an eyebrow. "The King? Who's that?"

"The guy who helped Padre and I in China, remember? I told you. Well, he's in California now, in L.A. actually, but he has a friend who has a guy who owes him something, so now I'm Claire Madison Smith. American, too. I'm supposedly staying here to complete my studies for a year only."

Light chuckled. "You sure are something… Don't ever run away from me like this. We could be in the same quarter and I couldn't track you down."

"That's the point, duh!" she mimicked an American diva for a moment. "So I've found this apartment and rented it on my alias. It's on the seventh floor out of eight, the highest I could get for a reasonable price. It's small, but so gorgeous – and the view is almost as good as from the very top. You've got to see it."

"Do you want to go there this evening?" he asked with a grin.

Caterina shrugged. "Anytime you want. But I have to warn you – we'll have to order dinner if you do."

"Alright then, Claire," he teased her. "Or should I call you Madison, Miss Smith?"

Caterina laughed and rolled her eyes. The waiter came to take their order and immediately, Ryuk was trying to steal an apple from the man's front pocket. Light threw him a murderous look before they would witness a floating apple being eaten.

"I thought we'd never have days like this one… Everything's going almost too well!" she smiled.

Kira nodded. "Also, I've already scheduled today until 11 pm, so we have the day free."

"How nice of you to free your agenda for me," she replied with a hint of irony, but he didn't mind it. "You know, I really owe you for that night… I panicked so badly, I couldn't think straight."

Light shrugged with a smirk. "We're in this together, right?"

Caterina nodded. "That's right… Through thick and thin."

 _'Are you getting married?'_ Ryuk asked all of a sudden. Both of them looked at him with shock written all over their faces.

"No," Caterina answered him eventually, only to have Light smirking at her.

"Then I don't need a ring this year, do I?"

That evening could be well described as a taste of paradise. The next day as well. Of course, Light had to call home so his parents won't be worried, but they spent every moment together while corrupted hearts kept stopping every hour. The criminals were dying one by one, while they were finding comfort and that taste of power they both found so addictive in a small, barely furnished apartment.

The two even came up with an idea – by keeping the deaths scheduled every hour, Kira could send L a very clear message. It won't take him long to see that Kira had access to strictly confidential information regarding the state of the investigation, while Caterina pointed out it could turn them against each other.

 _'I don't follow,'_ Ryuk interrupted them. _'What's the point?'_

"Well, if they become aware there is a leak, L will start investigating the police. In turn, they will investigate L. What we hope to achieve is to find out more about L, to get closer to him… while letting the police do the work," Light clarified.

"Even more, there is already a great difference between the policemen and L. They know Kira only needs the name and face, both specified on their IDs in a public data base. My bet is that many policemen will start to resign any moment now, afraid for their lives or simply giving up because of the great pressure of working in a stressful atmosphere where everybody is suspecting everybody." Caterina laid on the bed. "It's what happened whenever my father decided to keep a closer eye on a group of men."

 _'I see now…'_ the shinigami said. _'But you really should know… First of all, I'm on nobody's side. You'll never hear me saying anything about whether what you're doing is right or wrong. I'm not here to support you or give you my opinion – I'm just a spectator. But as your room mate, I might have a few things to say now and then.'_

Both were paying attention. It was rare for Ryuk to talk so much at once. "What's this about, Ryuk? Why are you telling us all this stuff now, anyway? It's really not like you," Light spoke aloud for both of them.

 _'It's just that I'm no ally of yours, or Kira's, if you prefer – the only reason I'm gonna tell you this is because personally, it's starting to creep me out.'_

"Would you cut to the point?" Caterina asked, already annoyed by all of this long, repetitive speech.

Chuckling, Ryuk finally said it. _'You're being followed by another human. He's been watching you two all day. It's really starting to get on my nerves! I've realized there's no way he can see me, but because I'm always following behind you wherever you go, I feel like I'm constantly being watched.'_

Kira's expression changed. He was now cold, so calm he almost looked expressionless. "That's a problem… We'll have to get rid of him as soon as possible."

"Agreed…" Caterina mumbled, holding one knee close. "Is it a policeman, Ryuk?"

 _'I don't know'_ , the shinigami answered. _'It's not like I've asked him.'_

"Who could be following me…?" Light wondered aloud. "Does this mean L is already starting to suspect the police?"

"If he's following you, then it means he still uses the previous assumption. He's rather investigating the families of those in the investigation team who have members matching the age of a student. We need to know if you are the only one or not… And I think I have an idea how to do this."

Light looked at her for a moment, then grabbed her laptop and began typing. He had connected it through the internet to this own, personal computer. From there, he transferred his father's files, then sent then on a memory stick he had left connected exactly for this reason. "Ryuk, if you want the stalker gone, go back home and bring me the memory stick second from the right from the back of the central unit of my computer."

 _'What…?'_ the shinigami asked as soon as he tried to repeat the task in his mind.

"There's a big metal box with a little light on the front that shines when I open my computer at home. Do you know what I talk about?" Light began, holding back a sigh. "Behind it, there will be little things poking out. They look kind of like plastic fingers, but flatter. Pull out the second, counting from the right. I need it as soon as possible."

 _'…Why not do that through the internet?'_

"Because he'd be tracked down and the police would be at our door in a matter of minutes. Now go," she shooed him away with a sigh. He was annoying, but a vital helping hand in times like this.

After a moment, Light called her over. "I accessed the public data base of the police. Once Ryuk brings me the files, we will know the names of those working on the case. With this base, we can find out then about their families. What else do you need?"

Caterina nodded. "Good. I'll need their home address as well."

"What are you going to do?" Light asked.

She shrugged. "I haven't decided my signature yet, but I think I'll borrow Padre's."

He frowned, standing up. Someone was ringing their door. "Yes…?" he asked through the speaker of the interphone.

 _'Delivery for Miss Smith. Is this the address?'_

Instead of an answer, Light let the delivery boy into the building. "You're not staining your hands with innocent blood. You should have known I wouldn't agree to this – not now, not ever."

"Why not?" she whined. "You do it or I do it, what's the difference? They're a threat, so they must go. They're getting too close. If we don't take them down, they will."

"No!" Kira protested. "No! You're not going after the innocent. If we pick a fight, we pick a fight with them, in person, but not with their sons and daughters and wives and pets. I don't even want to consider it."

Caterina shrugged. "Makes no difference to me, darling… But do whatever you wish. I'm just telling you an enraged son or wife can be just as dangerous, but you will find out on your own eventually." Taking some money, Caterina was counting how much she owed the delivery boy.

Light, still by the door, opened up when he heard a noise and took his wallet from the pocket of his coat in the hanger. "Thank you. Have a nice evening."

"You, too!" The boy smiled brightly when he saw a few yen more than the price of the meal. He left as soon as he received the money and Light took the food and closed the door.

Sighing, Light went to the kitchen and left the bags on the table. Caterina followed, while his mind was still a little off. "Caterina… Who do you plan on taking out, precisely?"

She began unpacking their still hot food. "Whoever gets too close. From my point of view, that means the entire investigation team, except your father. However… It may be better to wait for now and see which of them can be corrupted and which will drop out, like you predicted."

Ryuk flew back with the memory stick and found them in the kitchen. _'Is this it?'_ he asked with a grin.

Kira took it immediately, going back to the working area and setting the laptop on a small, round coffee table. He sat on the low window sill, going through the files. "Yes, this is it! Now… this changes the context. Love?"

When she came back, Caterina signed him to be quiet. She was calling someone, talking in a language Light didn't understand. It wasn't English, but it had a nice melodic sound to it. Was it Italian?

"It's important," Light told her anyway. He turned the laptop around and showed her a phrase marked in blue. Her eyes went wide, reading it twice. This was a whole new level…

Ryuk was laughing. _'You're both in trouble now.'_

Light turned to look outside the window. He couldn't see well who was outside, so he hacked into the security system of the residential complex. By the time he finally did it and tried to zoom in on the man's face, the person was leaving.

Caterina crossed her arms as she hung up. "…I was counting on a friend back in Naples, but he won't get involved in this. I can't believe it's the freaking FBI that's after us now… It's insane! No one will help us now. I can't afford to negotiate with those who could stand a chance against them."

"Then we will have to do that…" Light began searching every file in particular for any bit of information that could help him find out the true identity of at least one agent. "We need to get to one of them. I'm certain they know each other, so if we manipulate one, he could take himself out, as well as the rest of the pack."

"That will most probably be the one following us, but how…?" she thought out loud. Caterina went back to the kitchen and brought the two meals into the room, setting one besides the laptop for Light and holding hers in her hand. "The worst part is that this L and the police have several times more resources than we do."

Light nodded and began to eat. "…Except we have our brains. That's how we're going to beat them at their own game. But for now, we need to schedule the criminals for tomorrow."

She stopped for a moment. "Wait… What if we can hack into the FBI database?"

Kira looked up from his food. "What are you thinking about?"

"Padre spoke, at some point, of a hacker who betrayed him once. The King knows more about this than me, so if the King pays someone to contact the hacker, bribe him and ask him to send us the details, then we would have the photographs and the real IDs of the agents sent after us." She set down the fork, drawing in the air. "So it would be us at one end, the King, another one or two intermediary figures, and the hacker at the other. He couldn't track the deal back to us and neither could the FBI. There are already two or three spider-webs of connections between us."

"Wait…" Kira stopped her. "If L knows I have access to confidential information, he could put fake leads in the files on purpose. That means there could be more FBI agents, less of them or even none. Perhaps they could be just a couple agents of the national secret services, or even undercover cops. Then, there's this hacker of yours… What if he betrays us too? And can we really afford all this?"

Caterina remained silent for a moment. "We need to make something with the money. If they sit in bank accounts, they remain the same, but we need more. We'll have to invest in something, but what?"

"What brought your father the most generous profits?"

"Well… drugs, obviously. But we can't afford to create a safe network and they are already afraid and distrusting, those working on their own… Then, there were the prostitutes, but we can't afford that either. Having one small bar as a cover-up is a risky move when you don't have the cash to support it. Commerce is what usually generates money, legal or illegal."

Light took a couple of moments to think as he ate. "Your father owned big companies, right?" She nodded. "So even at seventeen, you have the right to inherit these. If you say you doubt the authenticity of his will, you can sue Ooi and ask for what is yours. You have the right to pay whoever you want to represent you and administrate the companies."

"Actually…" Caterina began, making a new connection. "It says nothing about my mother's belongings. She had several houses and a couple cars that are best sold now, since the prices are getting higher every month and their worth is dropping every year."

Light began evaluating the costs and risks of every option that they had. On one hand, his idea would expose them directly and he would need to be absolutely flawless in his role. On the other, Caterina's idea was rather expensive, but far less riskier. It all depended on the money she could get from selling her mother's belongings… Or…?

"Cat, come here. Where are your mother's houses?" he asked. "How big are those? Could they be turned into something else…?" They began looking up the addresses and Caterina told him about the five houses her mother had in Italy, Austria, and France. "You can turn each into at least a complex of apartments with very little money. Her villa in Vienna could be easily turned into a hotel. Do you see where I'm going?"

"I do – towards a constant flow of money, but you forgot one detail," she said as she leaned over his shoulder. "FBI or not, someone is still following us. We need to get rid of them fast."

"Then we'll do it my way." He held her closer. "Look, I know it's risky, but trust in me once more. I know I can make this work, but I need you to trust me, alright? We'll need money and connections later on. This is only the beginning, love. There's still a lot to come and we will have to be prepared the next time it happens."

Sighing, Caterina wrapped her arms around his shoulders, still looking at the screen. "I need to show you how to use a gun. Just in case, you know? It's a bloody backup, but it's better than none."

"Don't even think about it," Kira sighed with a little grin. "But enough for tonight. We'll both go nuts if we keep thinking of work every single second. Come on, let's do something else."

 _'…Do I have to go, again?'_ Ryuk asked when he saw them getting closer and grinning like those roaming the streets at night, high and drunk and wasted. Except, these two were neither. They were just two kids forced to grow up too fast, feeling on top of the world and acting like the new Hera and Zeus of the modern world.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock** , as usual. I'm still waiting for reviews, favorites and followers. _

_I'm so glad to see you still around, **lilrilakkuma** and **xLonelyDreamerx.** Let me say that I usually go over the chapters after I get them back from my beta and look for any mistakes left, but last time I didn't. I will as soon as I have the time though, so thanks for pointing that out. _

_As for the "genius OC in the Task Force" kind of plot, I do find it the easiest way when the aim is an LxOC kind of story. It's overused, forced and unnecessary for stories like this one, focused on LightxOC / KiraxOC. L is a difficult character to reach, isolated and rarely having any social interaction with people, so his chances of meeting someone outside an investigation team are close to none. Light however, he's quite popular and easily accepted in groups. His social life doesn't compare, so I didn't feel that as an author, I'd have to force him to take contact with my OC._

 _This story could be taken out of the DN universe easily and still be somewhat believable. Maybe if Light's dad wasn't a policeman, the Dragon would have eventually learned to trust him. Following that idea, I think he would have tried to teach Light as much as he could, so Light could take over the unofficial empire once the Dragon fell. But that would have been a happily ever after where Caterina continues to live an easy life of luxury and security, Light gets to have the power he wants so badly and use his strong sense of justice and intelligence "to make it double", and that would have been the end of the story. The most plot development that could have happened would have involved one or a few children and possibly a sequel alike to the Godfather trilogy._

 _So you see, I kind of needed Caterina to fall in love so hard, she would be willing to die or it. Another possible "happily ever after" would be for her to just try to see the good in the man her father intended her to marry, respect his wish, and with a ton of luck, live the better version of her mother's life. However, I think it would be a little hard to believe for her character. She is turning into her mother, but the main difference between them is that Anastasia surrendered easily, while Caterina is going to fight for whatever she believes in._


	39. XXXVIII - Wine

_XXXVIII – Wine_

* * *

In the morning, Light returned to school and Caterina remained in the apartment. She made a list of her father's greatest enemies who could very well be hers now and stuck it on the wall with scotch tape. There were three major ones who had competed with her father when he was alive. Then, there were forty-eight associates who had been hunting for opportunities lately and who she knew from her father that he did not trust. But most dangerously… they were beginning to scatter around, polarizing around the three remaining dominant figures. These were Ivan "Frost" from Russia, Vitto from Sicily, and Rod Ross from California.

She also tried to identify their signatures and their preferences. The Russian would often torture the victims, then leave them outside until they would slowly freeze to death. He was renowned for his successful hit-men, hackers, and guns and weapons sold worldwide. It was probably where the hacker who betrayed her father went for protection and a decent pay.

Vitto, after making an obsession over the character of an American writer, began draining his victims of their blood. Many times, he would mumble Catholic prayers and ask for angels to assist him. He specialized in questioning and anything related to art – models, copies, originals, fakes, stealth and illegal transactions. He also seemed interested by ancient artifacts.

Lastly, Ross was the typical one. He dealt with the classic bullet to the head and was involved in many things, especially drug trafficking and prostitution. He seemed very aggressive, and had greater interest in trying to overcome Caterina than any of them. One could say it was almost personal. After all, Caterina and her father got rid of many of his men, including their butler Vincent, and most recently, his right-hand man – the Snake.

The Italian went through her father's emails and tried to piece things together. Everything was coded and most of the emails were just formalities. Managers and directors would ask if they should do one thing or another, or send payment confirmations, reminders and so on. However, there were several threats sent by someone immediately prior to the whole incident at the Green Snake bar.

For the moment, she decided to keep Vitto under observation, just in case he would suddenly receive some offer from either Frost or Ross. She immediately thought of her father's money – she could be making such an offer, if only she had access to a larger piece of the man's fortune. But that could only be achieved in a year – time she feared she did not have.

After a couple of hours, she sat up from the computer, rubbed her eyes and sighed. "…I'm so sick of this," she mumbled to herself. "I should get a cat…" Instead though, she decided to make herself some coffee, dump some vanilla ice cream in it and top it up with melted chocolate. She stood on the balcony, resting with her elbows against the rail way and breathing in the cold air. She needed money… Badly.

On the other hand, Light seemed to be doing well. He had just won at tennis yet again – by now, it was no surprise for anyone. At most, it was a consolation for those who lost. Yagami was impossible to beat at high scores or tennis. But even though he had won the game, he still felt odd. He was now aware of his stalker, who he saw everywhere.

As he was changing back into his uniform after the game, Ryuk drew his attention again.

 _'Do you have a second?'_ it asked with a wider grin than usual.

"I can't talk to you in public…" Light mumbled into his closet as he unfolded his uniform.

 _'Fine, then. I talk, you listen. If you don't want to hear it, you can plug your ears or something,'_ it began. _'Light, I'm gonna let you in on a little secret. What makes a shinigami and a human who has a Death Note different?'_ Ryuk asked, only to answer himself. _'Well, there are two things. And why do shinigamis have to write the name of the humans they kill in their Death Notes? Do you have any ideas?'_

Light sighed. How on earth would he know that? …Ryuk sure was talkative that day. He buttoned up his shirt and tightened the tie around his neck.

 _'It's because we are able to take human lifespan for ourselves.'_

He frowned. "What do you mean?" Light mumbled, aware the shinigami would hear him.

 _'Let's say you have a human who is due to live until the age of sixty, and a god of death who wrote that this person would die at forty. Sixty minus forty equals twenty – now those twenty years taken from someone in the human world are added to that god of death's lifespan. So, it means that as long as we don't slack off, even if someone was to shoot us in the head or stab us in the heart with a knife, a god of death cannot die. On the other hand, no matter how many names you write in your Death Note, your lifespan will not increase. That is the first difference between gods of death and humans who possess a Death Note.'_

When it was done explaining, Light was all finished packing his sports equipment. He chuckled. "That's interesting…" he admitted in a low voice.

Pleased with his reaction, the shinigami went on. _'The second difference between us will probably be of even greater interest to you, though this has less to do with lengthening life and more to do with cutting it short. Shinigamis can tell what a person's name is just by looking at their face – we know instantly. And do you have any idea why?'_ it asked again, leaning in towards Light so much that he almost fell backwards. _'Because through a shinigami's eyes, a human's name can be seen above their head. Not only that – we see their lifespan as well. In fact, I can see yours right now. If I convert that to human time, I can tell you exactly how many years you've got left, but there's no way I'd ever tell you that.'_ Ryuk laughed. _'Shinigamis never have to worry that they won't be able to kill a person just because they don't know their name; and every time we do take a life, we know exactly how many years we're going to receive. Our eyes just aren't the same – and that is the difference between you and I. Do you want me to go on?'_

Light walked out of the changing room and through the school yard. That was an interesting difference… He threw a glance over his shoulder and saw the same man following him. He was outside the school's main gate, pretending to be reading a book on a bench. It made Light smirk a little. So, he was going to wait there the entire day. Of course, the paper wasn't going to be believable enough for such a long interval.

Once Light nodded, Ryuk continued. It was already getting excited about what it was about to say – this was the best part. _'If a shinigami drops the notebook and a human picks it up, he can grant that human the eyes of a shinigami, but only if a deal is made – one that's been with us since ancient times… Does it interest you?'_

Kira's eyes widened for a moment, as he quickly took a calming breath and looked around himself. Nobody seemed to had noticed the change. "What is it?" he mumbled as he pretended to be yawning.

 _'The price for having the shinigami eyes is half of that person's remaining lifespan. That's all it is,'_ Ryuk concluded, as if it would have been the price of a coffee cup.

"Half…?" Kira repeated, shocked. At first, he thought he did not hear correctly.

 _'In other words, if you are supposed to live another fifty years, it would be twenty-five. If it was one more year, then six months.'_

A sly grin spread over his face. He could understand the situation perfectly and it was a very delicate one. The presence of a spy nearby could mean trouble for him on all levels – his identity as Kira, his clarity of mind, as well as Caterina and the money he expected from her, but not only. On the other hand, Ryuk made it very clear he was only there for entertainment. To him, it was a game, something to pass time. Certainly, it would be amusing to watch Light stressing over an empire that would never have the time to grow and develop, dying way too soon to make a durable change. As he was walking to his next class – economic studies – he couldn't help but feel that Ryuk was trying to take advantage of him.

 _'I'll say it once more,'_ the shinigami grinned. _'Give me half of your lifespan, and I'll give you the shinigami eyes. So… what will it be, Light? Is it a deal?'_

Kira took his usual seat. He didn't notice anyone else there – he was too lost in his own thoughts. Should he make the deal? Was it worth such a high price? Half of his remaining lifespan… considering he did not know it. If he knew he was going to die as a very old man, say in his 80's or older, then he could probably make the deal for about twenty-thirty years. The shinigami eyes would prove to be a very valuable weapon. He would no longer need to bother with finding the names of those who threatened him, his purpose or even Caterina – their face would be enough. In another twenty years, he will be about thirty-eight though… in other words, still pretty young.

According to many psychologists and sociologists, it was between the age of thirty-five and fifty when a man was most capable in all fields of his life, but especially from a professional perspective. It was when men would jump from one promotion to another, or establish their own business and climb the social ladder. With twenty years left, it meant he would only get about three years of glory out of fifteen possible. It meant throwing away four fifths of a man's professional climax. Also counting that he was considered brilliant at only eighteen, it only made the choice look more like a waste.

"…Can you tell me if I have another sixty-four years left?" Light mumbled under his breath. "Will I live to be eighty-two or older?" he asked again after a moment, but the shinigami only laughed. "…Damn you."

Light had thought for a moment that living until the age of fifty would be enough to see the world changed, his enemies finally realizing it is better for everyone to work together, and… well, a family to carry on his mission. He would have enough time to set everything in order. However… Ryuk's words echoed in his mind again. _'If it was one more year, then six months.'_

He carefully took out his phone and texted Caterina. He needed to calm down in order to find a rational solution, some way through which he could have everything he needed to rule the world and change it for the better. _'Any luck so far?'_

Caterina walked back inside the only room of the apartment and sat on the wide windowsill. She set her cup down and looked at her phone once it beeped. _'Narrowed down to 2. The 3rd could be lured to our side, but I don't have enough.'_

Light pretended to be copying the teacher's explanations from the board. _'Not even with the plan?'_

 _'It's an investment that takes over ¾ of what we have, minimum costs and all. K won't help, he doesn't trust you. We need something else,'_ he read from the screen as he set the phone down and began calculating. It didn't take him long to see Caterina was right – they were too broke for anything major.

 _'I have some set aside. We can live off of that while we make the investment. How long does it take to the first pay?'_ he asked, trying to plan in advance.

Caterina looked at the details emailed to her by the King. _'1 and half or more. 3 months at most and anything in between. Can we manage?'_

An idea crossed his mind. Could he make Caterina agree to the exchange? But as soon as he thought it, he labeled the thought as unrealistic. Someone who has seen premature, violent deaths all her life was more than likely to value her own life. But then, how can he obtain the eyes without paying such an enormous price?

 _'Probably, if we stop spending on unnecessary things,'_ he eventually typed back. When Caterina received the message, she sighed.

 _'I hate 'probably' and you know it. Probably, possibly, perhaps, maybe, are all useless. They reveal nothing. I want certainty.'_

 _'It depends,'_ Light sent back as he held a sigh in his chest. _'The most certain way is to make a budget per month, per week and per day. Anything left will go to an emergency fund for when the budget is not enough, but only for what's important, like bills or a sudden need for something. YKWIM.'_ The last word was short for _'you know what I mean'_.

Sighing, she ran a hand through her auburn curls. Living on a budget was the last thing she wanted, but Caterina could easily understand why they needed that. Soon enough, she received another text from Light. _'Any progress on what I asked you to do?'_

Caterina had to send back a negative response. She couldn't find anything other than what they already knew regarding the twelve FBI agents. _'However, I found something interesting regarding the dead. You should see ASAP.'_

Light was asked to go and solve a problem at the board, given as an example for the upcoming test. As usual, he solved it flawlessly – it was basic economy with very little math required. What he had been calculating for Caterina and himself was a little more complicated because the numbers were real and far from the idealized data of theoretical problems. The value didn't divide exactly, there were different currencies that he had to transform and he had to estimate the value of those currencies for the following year. In order for everyone to have a fair chance at passing the class, the teacher would spare them all of those little inconveniences of real life – it was a piece of cake.

When he returned to his seat, he picked up the phone again. The teacher was already making sure that the other students had understood that type of problem, repeating the explanation again. Light was looking towards the board, but thought elsewhere. _'Urgent?'_ he typed.

 _'Yes. 22514-316-237,'_ Caterina sent him and then threw her phone on the bed. She went to take a shower, thinking about Light and the constant threat of their messages being read by a third party.

Ryuk read the numbers twice. _'Hey, Light? What's with those numbers?'_ he asked after the bell rang and Light sat up.

The student was heading towards the bathroom – it was one of the few places where he could talk to Ryuk and make it look ordinary. He closed the door and looked around. There was nobody else there, so he began explaining.

"It's a simple code. The first numbers are letters, while the last represent an hour. It's a simple way to hide the meeting place and date." Light took out a piece of paper and began to copy the numbers. "Look. I will start with the second part because there are fewer possibilities. There are 26 letters in the alphabet, which leaves 3.1.6 and 3.16, or CAF and CP – it could be a café, or the central park. As for the second, it could be .4, 22.5.14, 22.5.14, or That's BBEAD, VEAD, VEN, or BBEN. The only one that makes sense is VEN." Kira smirked. "I know where to find her."

Ryuk looked at him, surprised. _'I don't remember you making any code.'_

"It's a leftover from back when her father and her were on the run. She would tell me if they were alright and where they've been before every few months through a long code. Several times, the rule was slightly different – for every second or third letter, the count had to be done backwards. She always sent the key right in the middle, if that was the case." Light walked out of the bathroom and checked the time. It was already 12:58 PM, so he rushed to his next class. From a window, he saw the agent still waiting for him to be done with his classes.

Caterina got dressed and left the house. She had the laptop fully charged and a memory stick with her and had caught her hair in a full ponytail. She loved her hair and cared about her physical appearance, but the teenager was already stressed by too many things to stand her hair constantly falling over her face. Caterina went to a small café on the corner of an alley in the central park, overshadowed by an old willow tree and calling themselves L'Etage. She had been there with Light once before – it was recently open and with a very European flair about it. The last time they sat there, she had showed Light a painting of Venice, right above one of the tables in the back.

As soon as she stepped inside, Caterina found herself smiling. It smelled of fresh coffee, cinnamon, and cloves. It played soft music and it seemed every table was in theme with the late 1800's. Tens and tens of candles were used for light and the tables were metallic, with a glass top, adorned with iron roses, veins and leaves – just like the chairs. It was dark, intimate, and very stylish. Even the waiter was incredibly stylish and in theme with everything – he wore his hair a little over his shoulders, tied back in a low ponytail. His vest shined in the low light with vintage swirls and curls in flowery patterns and he smiled like an old-fashioned butler.

"Good afternoon, miss. How can I be of service?" he bowed.

"Hi," she smiled, "I want the table by the Venice painting, please."

Although the café was quite small in comparison to others, the waiter still led her to the required table and pulled her chair for her. "Would you like to order anything? Please, if you don't mind me, have you been here before?"

Caterina chuckled, unsuspecting the true identity of the man. "Just once. Can you bring me a menu? I'll call you when I make up my mind, thank you."

"If you will allow me, miss, you are as beautiful as a nymph. I would like you to be my muse in creating something new," the man spoke softly, almost singing his words to the slow, jazzy instrumental in the background.

Caterina looked up for a moment. Why she did that exactly, she couldn't believe, but in a way, the man reminded her of some fantasy character, of a demon or maybe a vampire that had just walked out of some red hard cover book and jumped off the shelves of a library. Quickly labeling the thought as foolish and impossible, she nodded slowly. "…Alright, you have my permission."

As soon as the waiter left, Light was just walking into the café. He looked all around, skimming the paintings in golden frames and trying to recognize each. There were Barcelona, Paris, Dresden, Glasgow, Rome, Vienna, Monaco, and far in the back, Venice. He saw someone at the table, alone.

 _'Well, who would've thought? You were right…'_ the shinigami grinned behind Light as he followed him to the table.

Kira smiled when he could recognize auburn curls falling over her back. "I thought I didn't place my bet right when I first walked in."

She chuckled. "It's one of the reasons I wanted this table. By the way, the reason I wanted us to meet as soon as your last class was over…" She turned on the laptop and accessed a file from the memory stick. "These are threat emails he received right before the whole… incident."

Light nodded as he read through the few saved emails. "He knew several months before that phone call… That's strange. Each comes from a different address, but if we search these up, they've all been deactivated a few hours after…"

"Yes… So, do you think you can find out who managed these addresses?" she asked him after a moment. "I bet they will lead to either this guy… or this one," she said as she showed him the pictures of two men, both over forty but not really old yet. It made Light remember his conclusion from before, that he would be at the top of his game during the golden fifteen years.

"So, they are the two who are the most likely to…" he mumbled and waited for Caterina to nod in understanding. "I will try, but I can't promise you much. I don't remember them being publicly accused of anything. Chances are, these names have nothing in common with their real ones and there are no available files on them – alias or not, for the American." As soon as he noticed the waiter approaching their table, he immediately shut the laptop. He looked at Caterina in confusion – he didn't recognize what he saw on the tray, but her sly grin and the gleam of excitement in her eyes reassured him. Kira had no idea what it was that she had ordered, but it looked good.

"Poison apple and flaming dragon, signorina," the waiter grinned as he set the cups on the table.

Caterina suddenly paled. She reached for her gun, but several men walked out from behind the bar, from behind curtains or even from the bathroom. They all loaded their guns as she found herself lowering hers. Kira was equally as panicked, looking all around for a way out.

"…Who do you work for?" she asked. Usually, men younger than forty had no chance of working for themselves and the waiter didn't look older than perhaps… his late twenties? Thirty, at most.

Smiling, he shrugged casually and the armed men withdrew back into their hiding spots. "I thought you would have guessed already," he spoke in the same relaxed voice he had used before. "That frown looks terrible on your face. You could pass for a marble statue with your ghostly pale, my darling, which considering I haven't tasted you yet, is rather disturbing to witness."

Light was confused beyond words. In his eyes, the man was nuts – he must have lost his last drop of sanity in order to speak that way. "She asked who you work for," he repeated, trying to impose his authority.

"He doesn't…" Caterina mumbled. "That's what he just said. He's the third…"

The man gestured towards the cups he had set before them. "Please, enjoy yourselves. Consider this the first taste of an eternal collaboration. You are both my guests, as I had hoped when I saw such a radiant young lady sitting alone. I will be waiting for you in the back afterwards," the man spoke just as softly and with a clear Italian accent. He was fluent in English, but he had a way of pronouncing every word that one could have swore he spoke a dialect of Italian.

Light frowned. "How do we know for certain this is not poison?"

The waiter stopped for a moment, looking honestly surprised. When he did come around, he chuckled and raised his both eyebrows. "You don't. That's the most fun."

Caterina sighed. "It's not his style to use poison. Besides, we're both dead if we try to leave before the talk, which won't happen unless we eat. He has no reason to poison us," she mumbled as she breathed towards the flames burning the sugar on the surface of her dessert.

Light looked at his dessert – a ball covered in red sauce the same shade as blood. He didn't trust that it was safe, but he cut it with his fork anyway, if only for curiosity. Its interior was a creamy white that smelled like apples, so he decided to try it.

Trying to get over the inappropriate names of the desserts, Caterina tasted hers. It was a fresh, very light mousse with dragon fruit. Actually, it was almost like a fruity reinterpretation of tiramisu, which she used to love as a child. It was how she would judge a restaurant when first going there with her father. For a moment, she closed her eyes and felt tears threatening to spill and a headache haunting her. She had this same dessert in a small cafeteria somewhere in the countryside, but she couldn't remember where. She knew she had asked her father what flavor it was and he told her about the fruit that looked like the scales of a dragon.

On the other hand, Light just tasted the cake and sighed. It was a weird, spicy-sweet combination that he wasn't such a fan of. It was kind of like eating apples, chocolate and hot sauce in one strange combination. "Caterina… I don't know your rules and whatnot, but please tell me I don't have to finish this. It's disgusting."

She shook her head and blinked away a few tears. "…Mine tastes like a memory. How cruel can a man be, to serve me this! Of all things, he had to make this!" Breathing in, she tried to calm down. "Light… Let's see if we can talk to him. If we're enemies, it's good to know. If he's on our side…"

"Then you might have a guardian angel, after all," the waiter chuckled behind her as he appeared from between some curtains. "Would you be so kind to follow me?"

Looking at each other, the two agreed on doing as they were told. Kira wrapped an arm around her waist, as she tightened her grip around the gun she held at the belt of her jeans. They were descending into a basement, down some stairs cut directly into stone – or at least, into some material replicating it perfectly – and through a very dark passage way. They both hoped the stairs would have the same pace until the last one, because they couldn't see what they were stepping on.

Eventually, they stepped on a carpet so thick it felt like their feet were sinking into it. There was light coming from a couple wall lamps mimicking candle sticks and a chandelier in the middle of the room. It was no larger than the café, with stone walls and wooden floor and some magnificent carpets with intricate patterns. Caterina looked at a couch as she walked past it. She could recognize real damask by touch, then ran her fingers over the swirls of wood framing its back. He had many paintings on the walls, all absolutely gorgeous and as realistic as digital pictures. There was a fireplace across the room, apparently useless, but the contradiction intrigued her. It could hide another passage way, a safe, or maybe an arsenal.

All this time, Light was just standing there. He was looking for possible threats. There were apparently useless curtains hanging from the ceiling to the floor in a dark, deep red that didn't allow him to see through them. It seemed the only way out was through the stairway that was now guarded by at least one man, standing a couple stairs behind him. Carefully, he stepped in.

 _'How are you getting out of this, Light?'_ Ryuk mocked him again. He was obviously amused with the scene before him.

Vitto sat down on one of the two couches and crossed his legs. He looked more alike to some nobleman in a painting than to a human being from the 21st century. He gestured towards the two armchairs and the couch in front of him and nodded. "Please."

Caterina walked around the couch she was looking at. She tried to relax, leaning against the arm of the couch as Light joined her by her side. "What is the purpose of this?" he asked first, trying to ignore Ryuk's laughter.

"You see, I never forget what someone of importance orders. In this world, the only fortune of most value is the mind – good thinking and an exceptional memory were the fortune your dearest Padre had received from our Lord," the man began, as his hands moved almost as much as his mouth. Light looked at them as they pointed up towards the man's head, mimicked the holding of something, or the clock mechanism of the mind, he supposed. It was almost tiring to keep watching his hands. "Our Lord had also been wonderfully generous with me, and I've no doubt that He's been watching over you as well. Let me say, it is remarkable how you could escape the Snake on several occasions. Have you thanked Him yet?" he continued to talk about intelligence and god.

Caterina threw Light a look that said she was close to considering the idea. After all, she had been held captive and Light had been poisoned – they were both one step away from death. "I'm afraid I've lost my faith in him a long time ago. Padre did many horrible things, yet he got away so many times with it."

The man nodded in agreement. "Of course, but the price he paid… What was the price?" he asked, rubbing his index and thumb together. "And I can assure you, he is only now paying for everything he's done, depending on His judgment. Who knows?" he shrugged, "Perhaps God will be kind to him, for punishing those sinful men for so long. However, there was innocent blood he had spilled, which is perhaps the worst way in which a man can sin."

Light, already annoyed, cough in order to get the other's attention. "I doubt the involvement of this god of yours and I also doubt his existence. Another thing I doubt is the reason why you're brought us here. I am almost certain the Dragon's life is not what you wish to discuss."

"Ah, he could pass for a Latin if it wasn't for that stiff face of his," he addressed Caterina. "An interesting choice, indeed. But as I was saying, your gifts are what eventually caught my eye. Your intelligence, your courage and your beauty – and make no mistake, I am talking of you both. You truly are a beautiful couple."

"What do you want?" Light asked, impatient and obviously stressed. "We've been talking for five minutes and getting nowhere."

The man shrugged with a faint smile. He reached for a glass on a little round table on the side and spun it around a couple of times. It seemed thicker than wine, but his guests didn't seem to notice at first. After feeling the aroma, Vitto sipped from his drink. "If it's business you prefer, we can talk about that as well, but your situation is so delicate, we can only be serious about it." His smile faded and he almost looked tragic in the way he kept staring into the dark red of his drink. "So sad… You are about to be crushed by Rod Ross, even with the help of Mr. Ooi."

"Are you on our side, or his?" Light was quick to judge as he leaned forward.

"Ivan Frost offered me 30% of the Dragon's wealth," Vitto pointed out the fact casually. "Rod Ross, after he heard about the offer, promised me 35%, then 40% and you, my lady. Even so, I wish to hear your part in all this. Let me just warn you first – the world, right now, is in a very unstable state, if you will. On the verge of war, if you allow the expression. It's happened every time one of the poles of power fell – changes had to be made quickly, in order to avoid a global conflict. Such a rotten apple of Discordia it is, wouldn't you agree…? Power struggles will bring us nothing but the Apocalypse."

Caterina felt the sky falling down over her. Her father's empire was going to be torn to shreds unless she would willingly give up half of it… But that would make Vitto more powerful than Frost and possibly at the same level as Ross, if not a little more influential. The King also expected something from her for the help offered during this single year of vulnerability.

"Caterina…" Light mumbled. He wrapped an arm around her shoulders and leaned back against the couch. "We need all the help we can get…"

"We'll be insignificant if we give up half," she mumbled back. "Unless… Would you kill for me, love?" she asked as she kept her eyes on the man in front of them. His drink left a strange red color on the glass whenever he drank from it and there seemed to be dark lumps at the bottom. Was his drink… coagulating?

Instead of an answer, Light sat up. "We offer you half of the fortune, sir."

Vitto grinned softly as he pressed his thin lips together, gathering a drop of wine. "Only that…? Now, please excuse my rudeness, but I have to ask an indecent question. Is your lady included, young man?"

Caterina sat up as well, barely holding back her anger. She wanted to slap his head backwards, but couldn't risk it with so many guards around. "You disgusting freak!"

"Then, 60%. That is my price," he smiled as he drank some more from his glass. "Can she deliver another one?" he asked one of the guards. "Please, that would be lovely." The man took his glass and disappeared between the curtains.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Let me first apologize for not updating for so long. College is eating up most, if not all of my times. In the real world, getting close to Light's school performance can be quite exhausting - I have no idea how he managed to deal with everything on his plate and still be the best student in his school. What the author of this story and Kira do share, among some philosophical views, is a crave for the first place and a slightly self-destructing perfectionism. So now that I've explained my absence, here's another chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock** , as always. The next one is on the way, and I promise to write as much as I can during this one week off. _

_I'd also like to thank everyone for your support and your very kind words. It brightens up my day every time I see a new review, and I'm overjoyed to see new reviewers. I hope you're still out there and reading, because I'm still writing and there will be a new character stepping in soon. I'm not sure yet if this character will have a major impact, but they will be present during the next few chapters._

 _By the way, what do you think of Vitto? I had fun creating his character, just like I had fun creating the Snake. For some reason, villains are more entertaining to write than good characters - that's why I'm still writing at this story when my other few are still on pause. I don't think there are any really positive characters or heroes in this story._


	40. XXXIX - A Matter of Patience

_XXXIX – A Matter of Patience_

* * *

A sigh escaped her mouth and blurred the window for a moment. Her hand was playing mindlessly with his hair, as she glanced outside aimlessly. "Light…" Caterina mumbled, keeping her head over his shoulder and their chests trembling together. It was so quiet, she could hear the blood pulsing through the veins underneath the thin skin of his neck. "What have we done…?"

Holding in a sigh, he rested his hands on her behind as he held her on his lap. The glass was cold against his back, but her hand was warm. He had been staring at the round lamp on the ceiling for so long, that now there was a white flash of fog behind his eyelids. "Which part of it? We've done many things today…"

"Padre's fortune… How do we get it back?" she asked. The agent was still following them, but they had greater problems now. Caterina got used to the idea of a stalker, checking every now and then to see if the man was still freezing behind some corner or tree, taking notes of them. She grinned bitterly when she spotted him again. "…Sometimes I wonder what he's writing in that note pad. Say, _'Suspect and girlfriend sitting on windowsill for this many minutes now, no change in behavior.'_ It'd be fun to read."

Light sighed. "He'll be dead soon enough…" After a moment, he sat her aside. "I'm not so sure about the empire, but I have an idea. However, I'm not sure it will work." Sitting up, he went to their improvised desk and picked up the Death Note. He skimmed through the rules, then took a pen and went to sit on the bed.

"Are you going to test it?" she asked, following him with her eyes. "What are you thinking about?"

"I want to see how far the Death Note can go." Light picked six criminals and began writing different scenarios for their deaths. "If I'm right, we should be able to use the rules of the Death Note to our advantage and if this is a success, then… Vitto will be lying in his coffin while we will be holding the nails and the hammer."

Quickly making the connection, she thought of the rules of the Death Note. "…The 6:40 rule. That's what you're going to use. So if it works, it means you can control the victim, right? Not just write how they're going to die specifically, but also what they do right before they die. You could make person A commit suicide, while killing person B as well… Right, Ryuk?"

The shinigami flew through the wall separating the room from the kitchen, carrying the last of his apples in one hand. _'Yeah… Why?'_ he asked, as he bit into the apple and devoured it.

Light grinned. "That was exactly what I was hoping to hear." Looking at the reports, he chose six criminals and tried to come up with six different scenarios for them, each with a different degree of realism. "Let's see how powerful the Death Note is."

"Wait…!" Caterina suddenly jumped. "Maybe there's something we haven't considered yet."

Surprised, Light stopped mid-name. "What could it possibly be? My plan is perfect!"

"That's not the problem – L is." Her phrase also caught Ryuk's attention. "You'd be offering him another clue by performing these experiments. L already knows you can kill from a distance, that you can control the time of death and that you need the name and the face of the victim. He also knows you have connections to the police and that you are in high school. It sounds a bit much to me, to be honest. If you let him know that you can control the details of a death as well, we lose another element of surprise, or… well, at least it will take him longer to figure it out."

Frowning, Kira took a deep breath in and sat up from his desk, pacing the room. "So then… I can change the cause of death. Suicide is an option… Poison? No, overdose rather. And… let's say a fight between inmates. It will take longer, though. But I want three difficult scenarios, to really push the limits of the Death Note. One will break out, but run into the electric fence. Let's add cancer as a cause of death and another… Say he breaks out and flies to Europe. That's impossible if I give him a short deadline."

Caterina sat on the bed. "You shouldn't perform the last two experiments on inmates. If it's impossible, the Death Note might kill them with a heart attack, which will instantly lead the authorities to you. I know two who betrayed my father – I'll let you have them."

 _'What about the overdose scenario? A little difficult to believe they will get drugs in prison,'_ Ryuk pointed out.

"Right. Caterina, give me three names and pictures." Light sat back at his desk and began writing the believable scenarios for three inmates. He quickly wrote their names, then began to fill in the details.

 _'Suicide. 11:11 PM - Bites his fingers off. Draws pentagram in blood and 'HAIL SATAN'. Scratches his veins open on both arms and laughs maniacally. Death by exsanguination.'_

 _'Electrocuted. 5:51 AM - Breaks out of prison. Beats two guards. Twists the neck of one. Chased, does not see the electric wire. Screams "Kira won't get me! I'm sick of waiting to be killed! I'm saving my own fucking life, assholes!" right before running into electric fence.'_

 _'Brain injury. 2:54 PM – Starts fight with another convict at lunch. The conflict degenerates and five others get involved. At 2:50 he receives a heavy blow over the head with a chair, falls unconscious. Severe bleeding of the brain causes his death before receiving medical attention.'_

He then looked at the pictures on his monitor and the names, those showed to him by Caterina. Just as before, he wrote down three names and then began writing the details.

 _'Cancer. 4:40 PM'_

 _'Drowning. 8:14 PM – Leaves the hotel room at 8:10. Takes the stairs to the ground floor. Goes to the hotel's pool and slips down the stairs. Falls face-down and drowns.'_

 _'Heart attack. 11:45 PM – Goes to bed at 10:30 PM. Wakes up at 11:00 from a horrible nightmare. Feels compelled to fly back to Italy and gets on the first plane. Mumbles about having to visit the graves of his family. Threatens that he has a bomb and hijacks the plane by 11:45 PM.'_

Caterina walked behind him and looked over Kira's shoulder. "Don't you think you're going a bit far with that last one?"

He looked up, smiling and a little confused. "Why would you say that…?"

"First, was it necessary to give the man a nightmare and have him talking nonsense? They might not even allow the man into the airport and send him to a mental asylum instead. Then, isn't the timing a bit too tight? There's no chance he'd be in the air by 11:45 and if the plane is still on the ground, he'll be taken off immediately."

His eyebrows rose with surprise and he chuckled. "That's the point, remember? It's the most unbelievable scenario, only beaten by the cancer one perhaps… So, we're going to see if anything at all is going to happen, and if so, then what part will happen."

She sighed, resting her elbows on his shoulders. "…What if nothing happens? He's not known to suffer from any heart condition. It could be linked back to you in a matter of seconds if L looks into it."

Frowning slightly, Light's smile began to fade. "Let's just hope that won't happen. As for Vitto… We need to prepare taking over his fortune and connections before he leaves the scene. If my idea works and we get rid of the FBI agents so smoothly, we'll use the same method on him and he can take out Ross and Frost as well."

She began to laugh and covered his eyes with one hand, then moving it over to his forehead. "You're so naïve, Kira… Do you honestly believe he knows their names? Their real names, that not even their right-hand-men know?"

Suddenly, Light stood up. "Then, we'll find something else! We just need this creep out of the way! If we get him down, we'll be in control of not only your dad's fortune, but his own too; and right now – not in another year." He sighed and held his face in his hands. "…I'm not patient enough! I want to know if the Death Note can work the way I want it to, and if the stalker can be tricked to kill his teammates, and this creep's real identity so we can battle the other two left with full force and actually stand a chance! What happened earlier was humiliating – he pushed us into a corner and we didn't even know it before it was too damn late to do anything… I don't want that happening ever again."

Frowning, Caterina crossed her arms over her chest. "Then quit your self-proclaimed god-like image and get back to earth, Kira!" When he turned to glare at her with shock, a cold chill ran through her body like electricity, but she chose to deny it. "You know I'm right! Stop imagining you rule anything and start thinking like the guy I met three years ago, who took me out on a 'non-date' and talked about the political system and the lies and distractions promoted by the media. Start talking like the teen with a revolution in his mind, constantly planning, calculating five years ahead. You said you wanted to get into the system and beat them at their own game – you never mentioned ruling over anyone."

"What do you want me to do?!" he raised his voice. "I'm trying to get both of us out of this mess, while keeping up with school and family and doing Kira's work, because someone just won't write one goddamn name!"

"…It's disgusting." She wrinkled her nose for a moment, then walked right past him and towards the door. "You're starting to talk like the Snake."

Confused and angry, Light stood in the doorway of their bedroom. "What do you mean?"

Ignoring him, she took her boots and her coat. "I mean you're losing your sanity and your integrity and starting to talk like a maniac, like a real criminal just about to slaughter half of a country just because someone looked at you the wrong fucking way! That's what I mean! You make such stupid mistakes – it's like you're not even trying! You're supposed to be the man here, _'smartest student in Japan'_ , like you always brag in front of me – yet you wanna think you can solve any shitty situation by killing someone. What the hell happened to that idealist I fell in love with?!"

He held the bridge of his nose. Ryuk was intrigued, watching their first serious fight with interest, but he was a little scared to draw their attention on himself. Kira though – he seemed more than a little lost in his thoughts, desperately trying to find the right words to say and destined to be wrong. "Where are you going? Hang back your coat and leave your boots. You're ridiculous."

"What does it matter? You could kill me even if I ran to the other end of the world!" she snapped back.

Sighing, Light caught up with her just as she was opening the door and leaned against it with one hand. "You're not going anywhere." He quickly stopped her hand from crushing his cheek and pulled her closer, trying to hold her wrist and take off her coat at once. "I won't allow you. I'm the new god of this world, and you… you are mine."

But her other hand turned his head around, slapping his cheek so hard, he felt his hopes of holding her there shuttering like broken glass. Light touched his face, feeling the skin getting hotter by the second and pushing his cheek away from between his teeth with his tongue. The door slammed so hard, the noise made his ears ring. What was that just now…?

 _'Do you hear me? Light!'_ Startled, he looked up at Ruyk as if he had no idea who the shinigami was. _'Are you just gonna let her go?'_

Kira looked around, trying to make sense of what had happened. Did she really leave? Part of him almost expected to see her somewhere in the apartment, pouting and with her arms crossed, but still by his side.

Panicked, he shoved his feet into his boots and ran outside. She couldn't have gotten far, could she? But he had no idea in which direction she went. He took the elevator to the ground floor, walked out of the building, but couldn't tell which way she went. "Ryuk? Do you see her? Do you?!"

The shinigami just laughed. _'Too late.'_

Glaring, he turned to Ryuk and pointed an angry finger at him. "You useless bastard! Would it kill you to help me once in a lifetime?" But Ryuk was having the time of his life, laughing constantly. All that mockery was only making it worse for Light, who felt his anger and frustration reach some unprecedented level. Did she just dump him? And Ryuk was laughing at it. No… Caterina couldn't have dumped him just like that. She was going to come back any moment now, or so he tried to tell himself over and over. The Italian needed him, right? She had to return, eventually…

He mumbled and went back upstairs, looking over the Death Note again. He went to the kitchen in search of something – he wasn't really hungry, or rather he was too angry to eat, but he looked through the kitchen anyway. The fridge was empty, except for the leftovers from last night.

He returned into the room and looked at Caterina's blouse that had been in a corner by the bed since last night. There was something so infuriating about it, he had to look away. Her backpack was carefully set to lean against one wall, right next to his school bag. Throwing himself on the bed, Light eventually found himself staring at the phone before realizing it and turning on his other side.

Caterina was breathing into her fists, trying to warm her hands at least for a few seconds. It was a horribly cold night, and the fresh air was starting to get to her brain. She wanted to see if Light was going to come after her, but the more she looked back towards the other end of the street, the worse she began to feel.

When it came down to the principles by which they both lived, she realized their wants and needs were different… If Light cared more about what he did than how he lived, she valued the quality of her life more than that of mankind in general. Her father knew that… so perhaps she could trust his judgment and follow one of his wishes. She began to walk towards the center of the city, looking for a certain address. Caterina stopped to ask a cab driver for directions, but didn't get into the car – she didn't have any money on her.

Instead, she kept wondering the streets, trying to avoid any strange-looking person that didn't seem trustworthy enough. The city was a scary place when she knew she was alone and vulnerable – it was a horrible place, filled with strange people staring at her. There were homeless drunks leaning against walls or breathing into dusty bags filled with something. _'Drugs,'_ she immediately thought. Prostitutes were waiting for their clients just outside the bar where they worked and men were eyeing her suspiciously.

Her heart was trembling in anticipation and an irrational fear was twisting and turning in her stomach. Caterina stopped the first cab and got in. She could not tolerate to be on the streets alone anymore. "Drive, please!"

"Where to?" the driver asked as he sucked the smoke from his cigarette, only to hang it outside the window.

Caterina searched her pockets for the visit card she had purposefully forgotten into that coat. On the back there was an address written by her father in ink. Once she found it, she showed it to the driver. Although in his mid fifties, the man threw her a smirk. "Is that so…? Hmm… He's got some taste, this Reiji – it's not easy to get to him, huh?"

The Italian frowned, trying to make sense of the man's words. "What do you mean?"

Taking another smoke, he shrugged. "I just haven't heard of any girl having him as a client, that's all. But he pays well, right?"

"What kind of insult is this?!" she snapped. "My father and his are old business partners. Don't you dare speak so lowly of us!"

The driver shrugged. "Arranged marriage, then?"

Caterina looked away. "Not exactly… Well, in a way. I turned it down."

"I see. So now, you're going there to try and get back on his good side. Well, good luck with that. Should I wait, in case… you know, it won't take you long?"

Caterina sighed heavily. "…Probably, yes. Wait for a couple of minutes. I'll send someone with the money."

The driver nodded as he finished his cigarette and threw it out the window, only to light another one. Caterina looked into her phone as she ran one hand through her hair, trying to tame a few wild curls. She didn't need anyone to tell her they were there. The cab stopped in front of a beautiful house in a residential area. Breathing in deeply, she got off the car and walked towards the door. It wasn't too late to turn back.

She thought about Light. He had a great deal of power on his hands – it would be a mistake to get on his bad side, but even so, she could see him changing for the worst. Should she tell Namikawa about it? Or even about living with another? He could label her as a whore, considering her mother's reputation. The only reason people didn't openly call Anastasia a whore was because her father was there to make sure they were respected as a family.

There was one light on at the top floor. Good news – he wasn't asleep yet. Bad news? He could be in bed with some woman, or in the bath tub, or in his pajamas reading in bed. Taking one more breath and holding it in her lungs, Caterina eventually rang the bell. It seemed like forever until she finally heard the door lock turning and the young woman was ready to leave, turning on her heels once she heard her name.

"Caterina…? What happened?" he asked in a kind voice, sounding a little tired and more than surprised to see her there.

"Hi, um, I-I just, ah…" She felt a giant wave of shame and self-irony swallowing her. She coughed a little and looked down at her feet. He looked tired and his shirt was wrinkled, probably buttoned in a hurry. "I-I just thought I could make it on my own, but I messed up. I messed up bad, and I-I'm just…" Trying hard to keep her self control, she swallowed her sobs and tried to blink away a tear. Caterina could easily imagine her father standing where Namikawa was standing, watching her coldly and ready to disown her. "I apologize for this hour, I should probably go."

"Yes," he almost chuckled, "You should probably go inside." It was a little amusing to watch her trying to hold back from crying for such a insignificant event. He took his wallet from his briefcase in the hallway and went to pay for the taxi. "I don't want rumors about this. Know I will remember your plate, sir. Good evening."

The driver looked at the extra cash and grinned. "Not a word, sir. If you ever need me, or if the lady does, it'll be my pleasure." The man could only pray for such generosity every now and then – it would lift him up from the verge of poverty.

Caterina, on the other hand, was hoping she would never be in such a humiliating situation again. She walked inside and took off her boots, hung her coat and waited for Namikawa to return. If he wouldn't have been close enough to hear it, she would have slapped herself over the face for breaking down like that. "I'm so sorry, but I don't know who to turn to…!"

He shook his head with a small smile. "Don't bother. I was waiting for you to come to me, actually." Namikawa walked inside and left his shoes, locking the door again and setting his wallet back into the briefcase. When he saw how surprised she was to hear his words, he knew he had to clarify. "This boy that you preferred in my place may be a few years younger and he probably gives you a thrill of excitement, has a more fun-oriented lifestyle. However, this kind of momentary attraction never lasts long, so I was waiting for you to come to the same conclusion. He may have a sharp mind now, but without the right corrections through education and example, this boy's chances to achieve success in any field are close to none."

Nodding, she began to calm down a little bit. She felt like a teenager busted while playing with toys – she had to stop acting like daddy's girl and start acting like the Dragon's heir. "I see… How far had you calculated this situation? I suppose you found out about Ooi."

The man nodded and led her into the living room. Caterina saw the Japanese style combined with the American one into a huge library occupying an entire wall and an electric fireplace. Lower than the floor stood a traditional low table, surrounded by three couches united to form a square U shape.

"I did. A foolish move, but predictable. Just like now you've rebelled against that boy… what was his name? The chief's son. With Mr. Ooi, it was only natural. I warned him about it – being so strict and rigid after the way you've been used to being treated by your father was simply turning you against him." The man invited her to take a seat. "Would you like some tea?"

Caterina descended the two small steps and sat like she usually did – with her legs crossed, leaning back and resting her arms on the back of the couch. "Thank you, but don't bother about it. Please, tell me more about this. How did Mr. Ooi react? He didn't seem to believe me when I last saw him."

Namikawa chuckled when he saw how comfortable she was and took a seat across from her, resting his elbows on his knees. "He certainly believes you know, in case it wasn't obvious. However, he won't be holding a grudge for long."

If that was a joke or just a reassurance, Caterina couldn't tell. Either way, she smiled. "That's some good news… And here I go, ruining your evening further with my bad news." When he decided to remain silent and return a small smile, she went on. "Well… let's start with the worst, shall we? Vitto is here. He's after Yagami and me, or rather, I'm the one who dragged him into this mess, just like I'm about to do with you. He asks for 60% payment for him protecting me from Ross, who I think is my greatest threat at this time. Frost seems uninterested in this conflict, but that doesn't mean I hadn't been keeping an eye on him. On top of that, Light Yagami – the guy I…"

Namikawa knew she was searching for a fitting word and decided to help her. "Yes, the chief's son – Yagami. Go on, please."

"He's suspected by L to be Kira, and there's the FBI following him. Now, since we've been rather close lately, I'm being watched too – naturally. I… can't say for certain, but there is a possibility I might have been followed here. I doubt it, but I must admit that it's possible."

Reiji was listening patiently. "Is Yagami really Kira?" he asked after a few moments of silence.

"…I don't know," Caterina hesitated in giving a clear answer.

"There's no need to protect him. I understand he is your first love and even if you do leave him, he will always have a bit of your sympathy and maybe some of your loyalty, too. If he is indeed Kira though, that complicates our situation greatly. I've been thinking Kira must be a single individual, most probably around your age. You see, the way he fell into L's trap during that challenge on TV shows he has a childish, impulsive character – most frequent in teenagers and young adults." Namikawa sighed and leaned back.

Caterina seemed a little fearful. "Kira follows an ideal. Earlier, you said about Light that without a few corrections, he can't achieve success, but then it means that with those few corrections, he has a real chance of-!"

The man was chuckling. "If you believe I will help your crush become the man you want to see in him, please allow me to laugh. This can only be a joke."

"That's… not what I meant. Not entirely, actually. What I'm saying is that he is already involved in this conflict with Vitto, so maybe we could help each other… someway," but her enthusiasm was fading every time she saw the amusement on his face.

"I will help you, there's no need to feel ashamed for asking me for anything. I will gladly substitute your caretaker and hopefully, with time, the pillar of your home, but I can't possibly help your crush surpass me. I won't advise you doing that, either. If Yagami is indeed Kira, he must walk this path alone and seek to keep his mind sane and his conscience clear. If he is not, then his father will help him clean his hands – as soon as that happens, Vitto and Ross will lose all possible interest in him and the boy will go back to his ordinary life."

Sighing, Caterina lowered her eyes again. She could catch sight of his body through that white, wrinkled shirt. She watched his large, long hands for a few moments, as fine as those of a woman and in such contrast to the hands of her father. Namikawa was a refined man, protected by his family – he never had to do any hard, physical work, he's been sent to prestigious schools, and sheltered from the ugly side of the world that her father had unwillingly dragged her through during the past few years. Namikawa could detach himself easily from his subordinates, labeling them useful or useless – to him, they were as good as robots. As long as the work was done, he couldn't care less of each employee's personal life or hardships. For a moment, she remembered Shin… He died in order to ensure the future of his younger brothers. Light would probably do the same. But what about the man in front of her, waiting for a response?

"Can I… take a little longer before I respond? I'm grateful for your kindness, but I can't leave Light all of a sudden. What I mean is even if I'm here now, I can't just decide that I won't care if he's alive or dead by tomorrow."

Namikawa smiled. "Of course. I don't expect you to detach yourself from him in an hour or a day, just like I don't expect you to feel anything towards me overnight. With time though, I may start to expect these two things from you, Caterina. However, that is a subject for another time. Before I show you to your room, let me ask about your luggage. I don't see you carrying as much as a handbag."

She nodded bitterly. "I rented an apartment that I shared with Light. I don't have too many things, but I left them there. I… wasn't thinking straight, I just wanted out. I didn't take the time to plan this, otherwise I would have called, asked you for permission instead of forcing you to take me in like this."

"I'll be expecting an important client tomorrow and he couldn't give me a certain hour, so tomorrow I'll have to be at the office by eight. I'd like you to stay inside and wait for me before going to pack your things. You'll have some time to think about your decision, but I trust your judgment. Regardless of your answer, it's best to keep everything as discreet as possible." The man stood up and offered her his hand, which she took. "I have a maid coming every day during my working hours to clean the house and cook. If there's anything you'd like, you can ask her."

"Sorry to keep you up so late, then." Caterina followed him upstairs and tried to smile in gratitude. "Good night."

Namikawa returned the smile, appreciating her effort to be civil. "Sweet dreams, my dear. I promise to hurry tomorrow."

"There's no need for that. Business is more important than my notes and a few clothes," she said as she held the door knob in her palm.

"Perhaps, if you choose to see it this way, but no client is more important than you." Caterina stood there for a moment or two, staring after him. Namikawa entered the room across from hers, leaving her to question everything she's been thinking about in the past months.

Light was left to reflect as well. He was caught between Caterina's problems and his own, trying to not only survive, but to thrive as well. It was three in the morning already and with no sign he'll be blessed with even an hour of sleep anytime soon, Light got up and sat at the table, opening the Death Note again. The TV was repeating the same news from earlier that day about a robber.

 _'What are you doing, Light?'_ the shinigami asked as soon as he noticed the human.

"I can't sit around and wait for a woman all my life. She'll come back, eventually – but I have something more urgent to do."

 _'Oh? And what's that?'_ Ryuk asked again. Light was amusing again, interesting – the creature couldn't wait to see what he had in mind.

"First, I need to get rid of the FBI agents." He turned on the laptop and checked the time table of several busses, then looked through his phone for the number of a girl he knew from school. He tore a piece of paper from the Death Note and crumbled it in his fist, then took an ordinary page and began to calculate the timing of events.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock** , as usual. _

_I'm really glad to see new followers every now and then and I read and appreciate every review, even if sometimes I might not reply to each individually. As for the plot, **EmeraldHeart1203** , I haven't read the manga, but I do follow the manga timeline from the wiki. I find it very useful in keeping track of the canon events, since in the anime, everything seems to happen much faster. This way, I can exploit those little timeskips in the canon version of events and build a believable scenario. _

_The series is really good as it is (at least until L's passing), so I don't see any reason to bring huge changes in the canon order of events. I'd rather stop upon the most relevant scenes, and perhaps, at times, I will change the order of small happenings (like the lines and the moment when Ryuk tells Light about the eye deal, for example). Other than that, there won't be any major plot twists - at least until L's passing._

 _I agree that Caterina is going to change. It's a huge responsibility she has to handle, which always changes the way people behave. It's what happens to Light, as well as the Dragon and the Snake (if you remember his past). However, I'll let you decide if she is going to change for the better or for the worse. It would be a good time to remember Anastasia's character, and maybe Bianca._


	41. XL - Wishes

XL – Wishes

The next day, Light called his friend on a date. The robber hijacked the bus, he tried to play hero, and just as planned – his follower revealed his identity by legitimating himself in front of him. The hijacker touched the Death Note paper, saw Ryuk, made a commotion, then jumped in front of a truck. The plan carried out perfectly, with the precision of a second – even so, Light wasn't pleased. He let the girl go home, pretending to stay and wait for the police there. As soon as she was out of sight though, Light couldn't wait to get away as well.

This time, he went straight home. "Wasn't Caterina with you?" his mother asked as soon as she heard Light went out with another girl.

"No, mom." His answer was brief and cold, almost bitter.

"Has she left you?" his sister asked. "Ha! See? I told you no girl would stay with a nerd like you. There's no one in this whole world who would put up with your _'aw, look at me, I'm the best and you're all trash'_ attitude," the girl mocked him, but instead of a response, her brother walked upstairs to his room.

Light sighed when he saw his bed. Some time ago, he saw Caterina there, crying so badly, it seemed her entire world had crushed into tiny pieces. Two minutes later, she was washing her face, talking calmly and acting as if nothing had ever happened. He couldn't help but wonder if that wasn't the only time she cried. Perhaps she saw things she never told him about, just for the sake of some fake harmony between them. After all, her father never talked openly with her mother. Caterina must have grown up assuming the tension between her parents was normal.

He sat down and held his head in his hands. "I can't believe this…"

 _'Which part of it?'_ Ryuk asked. _'Can't believe the plan went so smoothly? Or that Caterina left you for good?'_

Light wanted to punch him, but knew the shinigami wouldn't be affected – Ryuk would even make it worse by mocking his failed attempt to shut him up. "Are you going to find Caterina, or not?"

 _'How exactly is this going to make things more interesting? I've already seen you together, now I've seen you fighting too. What's the point?'_

Light hated the reasoning, but there was a trace of truth in it… Sighing heavily, he stood up and called the girl from before. "Midori, how are you? I hope the incident today didn't scare you too much." When the girl asked whether he was in trouble, he shrugged it off. "I'm sorry, I'm just a little tired. Still, I should make up for today, so how about meeting up again? Let's eat somewhere and later, if it's not too chilly, we can walk through the central park or sit by the lake." Needless to say, he didn't have to ask twice. "Great. I'll pick you up in an hour."

Ryuk was confused, to say the least. _'Midori? I thought she was just an excuse for you to be on the bus.'_

"She was," Light agreed shortly.

 _'What does it mean? Are you taking her on a date?'_

"Isn't it obvious?" Kira asked back, only to receive an even more confused stare from the shinigami.

 _'I don't get it. I thought you're sobbing over Caterina.'_

"Think again," Light brushed off his comment as we went through his closet to find a casual top and a jacket he could do without. "Caterina will come back to me, eventually. She's madly in love, but who could blame her? I can have any girl I want – all I have to do is ask her out. They'll all bathe me in affection, and serve me more than Caterina. She's too much of a bother, anyway."

 _'Yesterday you were all over each other and today you're replacing her? What if she does come back, but finds you with Midori?'_ Ryuk had a point, but Light decided to ignore him. _'Hey! Aren't you gonna answer me? …Or what if she doesn't come back?'_

The last question earned him a glare. "She _will_ come back to me, Ryuk. Just you wait… I'll make her beg for me to help her. Then, I'll do whatever I please with her. She will be mine, completely, because she'll be stepping on her own pride and crush it in the process. It's as simple as that – she'll come back begging, and then I'll have her."

That day, Caterina woke up late. It wasn't an exceptionally sunny day, but the sun shined every now and then. It was around midday when she realized she had no chance of going back to sleep. Though she had been awake several times that morning, she always found her sleep again and slumbered for another few minutes, slowly turning into hours. Now she could hear a vacuum downstairs and remembered Namikawa telling her about a maid.

The sheets had a strange scent. It was nice, of clean laundry and detergent, but it was a foreign scent all over the room and now, all over her as well. It made her feel like a stranger, like some kind of intruder breaking into somebody else's space. Hotel sheets didn't have any specific scent – simply clean, with no perfume of any kind.

Smiling bitterly to herself, she found her thoughts amusing… somewhat. Of course hotel sheets had no perfume – people don't usually live in a hotel long enough to leave their own scent in the sheets and into the room, in the wallpaper and the curtains and in the carpet on the floor. Every house had a specific scent, just like every person.

Sighing, she thought of the first time she noticed Light's subtle scent. It must have been the first time he held her close, but she couldn't remember. Instead, she remembered the first time they met, several times when they went out, and the first time he visited her and he caught her wrists so tightly, pressing her against the cold glass wall. She liked that at the time, though now it seemed disgusting and revolting – a gesture of possessiveness and impulsiveness… _'childish and impulsive,'_ like Namikawa described him so well without ever having met him.

Had Anastasia fell in love with the possessive, impulsive behavior of her father? Caterina couldn't believe she was comparing herself to Sia and Light to her father, but it came so easily to her mind, it almost seemed like the natural way to look at the scene. The thought she might end up like her mother made her sick.

Standing up, she put her only pair of jeans back on and walked out of the room. There should be a bathroom at the same floor with the bedrooms, so she took the freedom of looking around. She found an empty guest room and the bathroom, but instead decided to close that door and sneak into Namikawa's room. There were many things that could be guessed based on the way someone's bedroom looked. She sneaked in quietly, careful that the maid wouldn't hear her.

Caterina remembered how Light's room had something about it that made it feel as if he was all around her, like he was just about to wrap his arms around her and hold her tightly once again. Now, she could close her eyes and feel Namikawa's presence there. She was almost scared to try it – she felt like he was about to walk through the door just as quietly as she did and surprise her in the act, incapable of explaining her behavior.

His room was quite neat and very well organized. The bed had been made in a rush, but it contrasted well with his very ordered bookshelves and small desk. On one nightstand, she saw the cable of his charger. He had a really good phone, but two generations behind. Considering he could probably afford much more, it left her wondering why. There were two wall lamps above each night stand, symmetrical and contrasting in a soft gold with the metallic blues and the dark wooden furniture. His sheets were blue, just like the carpet – perfectly aligned with the legs of the bed and the edges of his desk and wardrobe. There were three doors of the wardrobe completely covered in mirrors, which made her wonder if he enjoyed staring at himself. She even wondered if it was simply a design made by someone else, or if he specifically ordered the mirrors facing his bed.

Just then, she heard footsteps and sighs coming from the staircase. Panicking, Caterina hid herself into the closet – she kind of felt bad because his clothes were so neatly arranged on hangers, but she couldn't risk the maid busting her. Being there was wrong, but she wanted to know this man who her father had trusted enough to consider an option for her.

By the time the maid entered Namikawa's room to see if there was anything to clean and to open a window, Midori was just walking out of her house in a green loose blouse and a pleated black skirt. She had caught her hair up into a tiny ponytail and seemed to have gone out of her way to look nicer than usual. "Hi," she smiled brightly once she saw Light.

 _'I don't think this is the best thing to do…'_ Ryuk has been trying to talk Light out of it since he called this Midori girl earlier, but Light has been ignoring him.

"I didn't realize you were going to dress up for tonight," he chuckled, pretending to look down at what he was wearing briefly. "So, where do you want to go?"

Midori gladly held his arm. Her eyes were shining with joy, as Ryuk sighed. "Anywhere you like!"

 _'Light, I don't like her,'_ the shinigami tried to warn him again, but it fell on deaf ears.

"Did your parents give you a time when you should be back?" Light instantly took on her. She was shorter than Caterina, softer, and with less authority. Midori was clinging to his arm like her life depended on it, and preferred looking at the sky or at something exposed in some store's window – she was counting on Light to lead her so she won't trip or walk into another person.

"Umm… I think dad mentioned something about 10 o'clock, but I'm not sure. My mom will call, anyway." Light watched her as she rested her pointer on her lower lip and looked up, only to turn on her heels. "Look! A blue butterfly! Isn't it pretty?"

Light looked in the direction she pointed, but didn't see anything. "It is, and so frail…" Caterina would have noted that feature before its beauty, or maybe she would have made a comment about the short lifespan of the butterfly. She would have started a philosophical debate from the sight of a blue butterfly… and all Midori saw was something pretty.

"Are you alright?" Midori asked after a moment. "It's been on the news, you know? But I didn't see you there. I hope you didn't get in trouble with your dad."

Light nodded. "I'm fine, just thinking far away." He put on a smile as they walked through the crowd. "My father asked me to stay where the cameras won't see me. I'm not yet working with the police, I just volunteer every now and then, when I'm needed."

The girl nodded. "I see. But you do get experience that way, right? I bet it will be a piece of cake to follow on your father's footsteps. Studying was never a problem for you, and you're so good at sports too… Now that you have the chance to see the policemen in action, they could hire you as soon as you graduate!" She giggled, looking up at him with sparkling brown eyes.

Light smiled a little and shrugged. "Who knows? My father doesn't help me in any way, so if I'll be good enough for them, they might recruit me."

"Might? More like will!" she laughed, correcting him.

But another girl drew his attention for a few moments. She was tall and thin, walking with purpose in her steps and making her way through the crowd with a coffee cup in her hand. She had some beautiful auburn curls jumping up and down on her shoulders, but her hair was too short to be Caterina's.

"Light? Is something the matter?"

Smiling, Light immediately came up with a way to turn the situation to his advantage. "I thought I saw someone… There's a man wanted for robbing three gas stations and attempting to rape a woman in one of them. I thought it was him, so I was waiting for him to turn around, but I was mistaken."

"Really?" she gasped. "Oh, wow…! It takes me at least a few days to remember someone's face. I'm much better with names, though!"

"Practice makes perfect, you know…" he replied, barely holding back a sigh. "Let's go for sushi. Is that alright, or do you prefer something else?"

"It's fine," she smiled happily as they entered a small restaurant. "Do you have a favorite?"

There was something almost annoying about her enthusiasm. Light couldn't help but constantly compare her to Caterina, correcting Midori every time she said or did something that made her look inferior to Caterina. In a way, he felt bad for it – Midori was a nice girl, very optimistic, very open, and quite pretty. She lacked something else though… She lacked the mind and the tongue of Caterina. How could Midori possibly find something interesting in a small talk based on their food preferences?

After what seemed like forever, Midori had made up her mind and they could order. At the same time, the maid was walking out of Namikawa's room and knocking on Caterina's door. When she didn't receive any response, the woman went on to clean the bathroom. Caterina could tell by her heavy footsteps.

She walked out of the man's closet and made sure his shirts and suits were as ordered as before. Looking both ways and listening closely for any sign of movement, Caterina sneaked back into her own room. She did her bed and opened a window. Looking at her phone to check the time, she noticed that there were no clocks in either her room or his own. Did it mean Namikawa was a light sleeper, bothered by the ticking of a clock in the middle of the night? That could prove to be some valuable information in case she needed to walk out at night. It meant that waiting for the man to fall asleep was not going to help her the slightest.

Sighing, she sat on the bed. Her stomach was grumbling and she felt so weak, she was starting to doubt the strength of her own legs. Soon enough, Caterina heard the maid's heavy steps going down the stairs and she neared the door, opening it ever so slightly.

"Good evening, sir! Home so early?" she greeted someone.

"Yes. Has the lady met you yet?" she heard Namikawa's voice.

"Not yet, sir. I knocked on her door several times, but she did not answer. I didn't bother her."

"Very well. You may leave early today. Thank you!"

"Thank you, sir! Have a nice evening!"

Caterina opened the door and walked into the hall, leaning over the railway of the stairs. "If 5 p.m. is early, what time do you usually come home?"

The man looked a little surprised to see her there. He immediately knew she had been listening to their conversation, but didn't mind it this time. "After 6, sometimes 8… It depends. Let's go pick up your things and then, we can stop at a restaurant and have dinner. You haven't eaten anything today, have you?"

Walking down the stairs, Caterina shrugged. "Only if I can change before going to dinner. I can't be seen like this at a restaurant and I doubt you'd like to be seen with a girl in a pair of jeans and a wrinkled tank top."

Chuckling, he nodded. "Very well. I'll wait for you to change when we reach your apartment. Why haven't you talked to the maid yet, if I may ask?"

Caterina quickly threw him a look of confusion. "I'm sorry, was there something I should have done?"

"I was just asking for my own curiosity. I doubt you've spent the whole day sleeping." He walked to a dark car parked just outside the house and Caterina followed him. The car must have been in the garage last night, she thought.

"I wish I could, actually…" she sighed. "I woke up a few times and went back to sleep. When I realized I couldn't sleep anymore, I laid in bed, pretending to be asleep. Sometimes it's better to just waste a couple of hours more. It's not like I had anything better to do, anyway."

He let her open her own door, but waited calmly for Caterina to choose her seat. She sat in the front with him, but seemed a little confused. "You don't have a driver," she stated her curiosity.

"No," the man smiled. "I am perfectly capable of driving myself, my dear."

"Isn't it tiring?" Caterina asked. She's had a driver ever since she could remember.

"On the contrary – I find it very liberating. At times, I drive through the city without any real destination, or visit other towns nearby. It helps me clear my mind sometimes." He smiled as he started the engine. "Also, the driver's wedge can be spent on more useful things, like dinner at a restaurant every now and then."

"I see…" she said, watching the road and how well Namikawa was driving. "Our driver, Diego, used to say the same thing. He sometimes drove a little too fast, especially when he had to come pick me up from somewhere. He'd ask me to cover him, but I'm sure Padre knew."

"Definitely. But as long as the driver is attentive, calculated and experienced and the car is in a good shape, nothing unfortunate can happen. I could let you try, if you wish. Then, you can go take your license."

Caterina wanted to refuse him at first, then began to doubt her answer. "We'll see about that."

"You've never sat in the driver's seat before, have you?"

Caterina shook her head. "It never tempted me." Before she knew it, they were already in front of her building. She realized then just how much the cab from last night drove her in circles before leaving her at the requested address. "That thief…! I never realized we were so close."

"Do you want him to lose his taxi license?" Namikawa asked her casually.

"…No," she sighed. "It won't change anything. Hopefully, I'll never need him to drive me anywhere." Caterina got off from the car and took out her keys from the pocket of her coat. "I'm sorry, but aren't you coming?"

Namikawa simply shrugged. "You haven't invited me."

"Please, but I doubt the apartment will be as ordered as your home." Caterina invited him in. On a first impression, Namikawa wasn't bad at all. He seemed to like her and relax around her, acting less stiff and more human. She noticed that, and began to lower her guard as well. It was hard to put her trust into someone after everything that has been happening since her mother's death, but Namikawa seemed to have good intentions. Sure, the fact that her father had trusted him was a bonus, but she didn't count on that alone.

On the other hand, Light was already tired of Midori. For the last half an hour, she kept talking about fish, condiments, sushi recipes and soy sauce. He's been dragged into a spiral of random small talk that didn't help him in any way. It didn't make him more relaxed or detached, and it definitely didn't help him solve the FBI or the Mafia problem. He wanted to escape this pointless date and fast forward to the part where Midori would throw herself at his feet and take off her clothes.

When they were finally done with the food and Midori took a break from all of her pointless talking, he felt a relief. While the girl went to the bathroom, he asked for the check and paid. Turns out, she even had cheaper taste than Caterina…

 _'Light? Midori is talking on the phone… With a man.'_

He immediately threw the shinigami a sharp look. Midori? No, it couldn't be. She was too innocent for that and too much of a giggly girly girl. But on the other hand… No! He shook his head slightly and looked at the clock. She's been in there for nearly ten minutes now.

Ryuk sighed. _'If this is your way to keep busy when Caterina isn't around, I don't like it. Light? Are you even listening? Hey, Light!'_

Kira sighed heavily. "What now, Ryuk?" he mumbled under his breath.

 _'Look around you. Do you notice anything…?'_

Light did as he was instructed. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary.

 _'Look again. Usually, he would be following you, that Rye Pember agent, right? He's still alive and not here.'_

Suddenly, Light began to understand… "You could've told me earlier," he quietly protested.

 _'I tried!'_ Ryuk quickly washed his hands clean.

Just then, Midori walked out of the restroom and approached him with her never-fading smile. "Hope I didn't take too long."

"Not that long," Light smiled in return and stood up as well. "So, where to?"

"Umm, I think you said the park, right?"

"I did… but it looks like it's about to rain. Would it be too early to ask you to come over? We could watch a movie, if you'd like." He wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they walked out of the restaurant and into the street.

"I-I don't know, I don't want to be a bother… What will your family say?" Midori was a little agitated. That wasn't part of the plan.

"Then, let's go to my apartment. I rented one for times when I wish to be alone. I study there, most of the time – it's much quieter than a full house." Light saw her still hesitating. "I'm sorry, it probably sounds wrong… I just thought that we've known each other for years, so maybe you'd find it easier to trust me. I'll take you home, then."

But the girl stopped, slowly shaking her head and with her cheeks flushing a soft pink. "I-I'm sorry, it's not that I don't trust you, I just… I don't know, this wasn't part of what you said earlier."

"I know, but I didn't check the weather. I should have, probably, but I forgot about it." Smiling, Light held her in his arms and rubbed her back with one hand. "Are you cold?"

"No… Well, a little, but I'll be fine." Just like he thought, Midori was incapable of lying when they were this close. He even thought she looked on the verge of tears. Could it be guilt starting to show, or something else? Midori had been crushing on him for a few years now.

Light took off his jacket and set it over her shoulders. "So, what do you say? Do I take you back home, or do we go to see a movie?"

"Um… W-would it be too sudden if we went for a movie now? It's just a movie, right?"

 _'What are you doing, Light? You're supposed to stay away from her, right?'_ but Ryuk didn't receive anything in response – not even a look or a gesture.

"Of course," Light smiled, keeping the girl close to him. She couldn't lie to his face when they were acting like a real couple. In truth, once Ryuk helped him understand her intentions, the girl was as good as dead – though he wanted to use her first. If it was a higher order or if Pember had contacted the girl on his own, he didn't know. Either way, she was his new follower, which meant there might be some suspicion hanging over him.

Initially, Light planned to take down the FBI agents tonight. Midori simply bought them a little more time, but at the same time, she could be his alibi. There was a little trick he could do using the clocks – by controlling the environment, he will control Midori. Perhaps it wasn't such a bad thing she was only average in thinking.

They took a taxi. Light kept his hand on the girl's back, sometimes on her shoulder. It made her slightly uncomfortable – enough to draw her attention on him alone. In his mind, Light already had a plan and a list of theories and guesses he needed to check, and this was one of them.

 _'What are you trying to do?'_ Ryuk asked, this time a little more interested in the outcome.

When the taxi stopped in front of the building, a dark car was just leaving. It was a luxury brand, one that Light has been admiring from afar whenever he saw it in traffic. However, he usually saw such cars in the economic center or close to the airport and the business quarter. To see one of these here was unusual…

After paying, Light led Midori up to the seventh floor, but was surprised to find the apartment empty. There were a few of his things there, a bed without sheets and a table without the laptop. Laying there instead was the Death Note, in all its glory and in full sight. Quickly, Light took it and threw it in his school bag, among many other notebooks.

"Well, um… what are we going to watch?" Midori asked after a few moments.

Sighing heavily, Light rubbed his face in frustration and ran his hands through his hair. "…I can't believe this! I broke up with a girl and she took everything!"

"Oh…" she said in a tiny, broken voice. "I see. So this is where you bring all of your girls, right? And I'm probably just… filling a void."

"It's not like that. I've been noticing you for the past few months, since my relationship with this girl has been… on the verge, to put it like that. I helped her as much as I could, but she was looking for money and thrill."

The girl looked at him and began to feel bad for what she'd said. Light looked so sad, so honestly ravished, she couldn't just leave him there on his own. "I'm sorry," she mumbled in a low voice, walking up to him and wrapping his arms around her own waist. "You probably loved her… But she's gone now and I think it's for the best. Know I'll be by your side, if you need me."

"You don't know how I need you…" he whispered in a low voice, holding her tightly – just the way he used to hold Caterina when she was worried about something. If he bought Midori the same perfume Caterina used in the past few months, he could close his eyes and imagine her there, clutching his shirt as desperately as Midori.

Caterina never did that. And she probably never will, but that was alright for Namikawa. He was past the boiling desires of the early twenties, becoming much more patient – even calculated, some may say. But that is exactly what helped him observe every little change Caterina probably thought unnoticeable. "You've been looking in that mirror since we left. Did you see something familiar, maybe?"

She looked at him for a long moment, but Namikawa seemed to keep his eyes on the road alone. "I think I saw Light with another girl getting off that cab…" she sighed. "I just wasn't expecting it so soon. I thought he'd wait for me, at least, but I should have known…"

"If he let you go the first time, there shouldn't be a second time. I know it's not the prettiest of truths, but that's the way it is. If you don't care about someone, you won't stay in their way when they leave," he began to explain. "It's the same in business, too. If I value an associate and they decide to leave a project, I will stop them. If I can replace the associate, I won't stop them. Even if I don't openly encourage them to leave the project, it's still the same intention I have."

"I know. I've seen it before, I just… I wasn't expecting it so soon." Caterina sighed. "We had more than just one project. He got involved in mine and I, in his. We shared a vision, pointed out each other's flaws while planning the next move. I think I began to expect him to put me first, just like I did." Caterina looked out the window. "It happened so suddenly, it makes me wonder if it's something I should have done earlier, in a more thoughtful way."

"Experience is crucial. It's better to go through heartbreak now, in this context, than later in life. You don't have to go through it alone, though." The man stopped the car in front of a renowned restaurant and gave the keys to a boy Caterina had to see twice.

At first, she thought she'd seen Light – though that was impossible. He'd never wear a uniform, and he'd never accept a job that means he has to serve others. Still, she kept staring at the poor boy until he turned to give her a confused look and she saw for certain that wasn't Light. Blinking, she shook her head slowly. "…Just wonderful," she mumbled under her breath.

"I'm sorry?" Namikawa asked her, not sure of what he had heard.

"Nothing. My thoughts aren't the most coherent, that's all. I still can't believe what I'm doing… You know? I almost expect Padre to wait for us at some table reserved since the early morning." It wasn't a lie, even if she first wanted to come up with a clever lie. Instead, the truth came out and it took her a moment to comprehend it. Caterina needed to hear it said eventually, because it's been whispering in the back of her mind ever since Namikawa suggested dining at a restaurant. For once, she felt like time had somehow gone backwards to some better days, when her father was still there to keep her safe.

"My most sincere condolences. You are the only one regretting his early passing more than my father and I." A waiter led them to a reserved table and Caterina was waiting for the man to look at her.

"You reserved a table? When?"

He smiled his usual smile, refined and a little ironic. "Remember I asked you how long do you need to change?"

Caterina chuckled as she sat down. "Not as precise as Padre, but close enough. Still, I'm afraid I'll have to ruin the moment and bring up what we didn't conclude last night." As soon as they were both comfortable in their seats, Caterina plugged in her phone and left it on the side of the table. Namikawa was waiting patiently for her to continue, since there were at least two problems she may want to discuss. "It worries me so much, you might see me with gray hairs in a couple of days," she tried to joke about it. "I'm talking about the American and about the Italian. It's constantly on my mind…"

"Did the latter of the two ask for anything as payment other than money?" Reiji asked calmly.

Caterina sighed heavily. "Me."

The man frowned ever so slightly. "Only to be expected from a low class like him… Does he have other offers?"

"35% and me, again. From the first one. But from what I understand, he wasn't pleased, so he turned it down. There's a chance they might renegotiate if 'Victor' thinks I'm taking too long to make up my mind. The problem is that since I'm still seventeen, I can't access Padre's accounts for another six months, meaning I can't possibly deliver such a sum – even if I were to accept. The only good side to this is that he may not be as interested in me as 'Robert'."

Namikawa nodded. He understood that Caterina was using aliases for Vitto and Ross, based on the first letter of the name. "Perhaps he can be bribed with something. You still need to verify this hypothesis, but I think he will find the offer very interesting. I can obtain the account number and password of a wooden puzzle from the Ming Dynasty. It's Chinese, of course, but my father knows at which bank it's being kept. I believe I don't have to convince you of its value – it's priceless. A legend among the 'treasure hunters'…"

"Are you sure? It's a very tempting offer, but how will I ever pay it back? I'd be forever in debt to you and to your father." She immediately saw how Reiji and Kira were alike – both would offer to help her, but expect her to be submissive and loyal for the rest of her life in return. At the same time, being hunted down by not one, but two or possibly even three Mafia heads at once and possessing such an enormous fortune wasn't exactly the easiest puzzle to be solved.

Suddenly, Caterina remembered a late night talk with her father, swimming in the rooftop pool of a hotel. She forced it out of him, but he was right – a son would have had a much easier time taking over the empire.

Reiji just smiled. "I'm not interested in money, my dear. What I'd appreciate more than any transaction is if you could at least tolerate me and see me as your partner. I can't imagine any reason why you'd reject me, other than perhaps being pressured to make a decision."

"I'm immature. You can say it – I know it's been sitting on your tongue since last night. One condition to be considered mature is to make the right decision under pressure – the more difficult, the better; while I'm just stuck in between you – the picture perfect prince – and Light, the inexperienced rebel in great need of cash and influence. It seems incredibly easy from the outside, but while I don't know or trust you as much as I wish I would, Light has been by my side for the past… two years, I believe. And yet, you offer me a way out of my most pressuring situation, at the cost of my love. I'm flattered, but at the same time, offended. What you're trying to do sounds more like trying to buy me while I'm vulnerable. I don't like that…"

Caterina looked up at him once she was done exposing her mind, a little afraid of his reaction and mentally cursing herself for spilling everything out like that. Yet, none of them seemed like a good option at the time – Light had already replaced her, and Namikawa was trying to ensure his ownership of her. She didn't know which scenario to be more afraid of – being on her own in a bloody war between Mafia organizations, or ending up in her mother's shoes for the rest of her time on earth.

Sighing, Reiji held his forehead as he leaned against his left hand. "Caterina… I did not call you immature. The age difference is quite obvious now, but it will become less and less noticeable over time. I regret it as well, but I regret the way you decide to look at this aspect more than its mere existence. I could ignore it without any effort, but you seem to remind me constantly of these eleven years."

"You were eleven. Have you attended their wedding?" she suddenly changed the topic, choosing to ignore the real subject they should be discussing. "Did Anastasia look happy, knowing she'll be owned like an object for the rest of her life? Or did she only realize it once it was too late?"

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Here it is, another chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock.**_

 _I'm glad to hear that you are enjoying the story. If you think it's not getting enough recognition, please share it or recommend it among your friends. The recognition of a story is given by its readers, after all - and to me, to see new reviews as positive as those is more than enough recognition to keep me going. Sadly, my time is short and I have a month of exams in June, but I hope I can update soon. You make my day when you review!_


	42. XLI - Trash

_XLI – Trash_

* * *

It was the 23rd of December and her third morning in Reiji's house. Because in her country, Christmas was an important holiday, and because it became familiar to him during his college years in the United States of Advertising, the maid received clear instructions from the master of the house to help bring a little bit of the festive atmosphere in. There were oversized red socks taped to the upper edge of the electric fireplace and the railway had a long red tinsel wrapped around it. A plastic Christmas tree found its place in the living room, and when Caterina said she wanted to hang a string of colorful lights in her bedroom, the man ordered the largest available online.

If it wasn't her first Christmas without her family, Caterina would have probably been overjoyed. However, she had been contacted by Vitto and was to meet him at his café at twelve. Getting dressed, her mind kept going back to the past few weeks. Light seemed happy that one day when he broke into his father's computer and found out the progress made in his case. He was relaxed, calm, tapping his fingers to his knee a couple of times when he heard a catchier song. They sat together in a café and it felt like the world was finally going to be theirs… right before it slipped through their fingers like a fish, slapping them both in the face and giving them a splash of cold water.

Reiji was waiting for her downstairs. He offered to drive her there and wait for her in a parking lot nearby, which made her feel a little less insecure. There was something reassuring in knowing someone will be keeping track of the minutes passing by while she will be inside. Caterina tried to tell herself that even if she died, or worse – got abused in some way, Namikawa would eventually be alerted and either intervene himself, or call the police, or Ooi, or… well, it didn't really matter, as long as someone was going to come after her.

Caterina wore one of her favorite shirts – a two-year-old burgundy one, matched with dark dress pants and a fake fur coat in black and gray. That was her last high fashion option for the cold weather after she kept moving and scattering her things everywhere. It was also one of the last things her father had bought her, which now held emotional value as well. Sighing, she walked out by the man's side.

"You look stunning," he complimented her as they walked to his car. It was quite obvious for Namikawa that she was nervous, even if she was acting calm on the outside.

"Thank you… Vitto can't find out how broke I am," she tried to pass a joke.

"Nonsense. All you have to do is ask – you know money never was a problem for me." He started the engine, but Caterina didn't reply. She seemed deep in thought. "Do you know what you should be saying?"

Caterina nodded. "I learned that sheet you wrote me by heart. Still, I have a bad feeling…"

"Any reason for your bad feeling?" he asked, trying to make her feel more at ease and think more logically than intuitively.

"Not really… It's more of a guess." Suddenly, she brought up a topic the man thought closed since the day before. "I'm taking my gun with me. I don't want to hear any arguments anymore – if only to make me feel more secure, I want to keep it near."

A heavy sigh escaped his mouth. "Please, don't stain your hands. It'd be unnecessary. If you think you can't negotiate, I can come with you."

"I'm seventeen, not seven. Thank you, but I think I can at least speak for myself." The second it rolled out her tongue was the second she regretted snapping at him so harshly. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean it like that. Please…"

He gave her a cold and disappointed look, but didn't say a word. The entire time until they reached the café owned by Vitto, both had been silent. Once they did, Caterina took off. He didn't even bother to look at her and it kind of bothered her – over the past three days, she began to get used to his much warmer and optimistic approach. He didn't seem bothered by anything she might have said or done, even if she thought it might have – up until now, that is.

Caterina looked after him as he drove around the corner, searching for a free parking lot. The sooner she was done with Vitto, the sooner she could focus on more important matters. The young woman had been telling herself she cared about Reiji solely because he was much more reliable than Kira or Ooi, but she was starting to feel more than a little guilty for her reaction from a few minutes earlier.

"Caterina?"

She jumped when she heard that voice. "Light?! What on earth are you doing here?"

"I could ask you the same question. And where have you been?" Kira tried to act mad, picking on her already. "I've been looking everywhere for you! What's gotten into you, running off like that? Do you have any idea how worried I was?"

Ryuk was intrigued. So, they meet again! Perhaps today was not going to be so boring, after all.

Caterina crossed her arms over her breasts. "I've seen how ' _worried_ ' you've been. Who's that whore you were taking to my apartment?"

"That ' _whore_ ' happens to be my alibi when it comes to the agents, just in case you forgot about it!" he spat back, clutching his fists tightly.

She clicked her tongue. "Of course she is. Just like Vitto, I suppose!"

"What?!" He frowned. "I'd never shake hands with a criminal! Heavens – are you listening to yourself?! It's nonsense!"

"Then why are you here, pray tell? Oh, you, all-powerful god?"

"Perhaps it would be a better idea to come inside, don't you think?" Vitto spoke in his usual relaxed voice, a little ironic and definitely amused. Both Caterina and Light glared at each other for a short moment, then attempted to walk through the door at once.

"Ladies first, Mr. Manners."

"I'm sorry, since when are you a lady?" he returned the burn.

"Caterina, please," Vitto bowed and offered her his hand, which she took only out of pride. The Italian man didn't know yet if they were the greatest number of spontaneous comedy he had seen since he moved to Japan, or if they were the most annoying pair of spoiled brats in all of Asia. Suddenly, he pulled the young woman towards him and attempted to wrap his arms around her, only to find himself face to face with a gun.

"As much as I appreciate politeness, please – let's keep this meeting a decent one."

 _'I missed her!'_ Ryuk laughed as he saw the man raise his hands and taking a step back. Light rolled his eyes and leaned on her shoulder. "Careful, love," he whispered in a low voice, grabbing her behind and giving it a rub.

"Wanna bet I can pull the trigger before you can write my full name?" she growled in return.

"If this would have led to sex, probably." Light walked casually to the only table in the café meant for more than two people. It was an oval one placed in front of a sofa in the far back. One could easily supervise the entire café from there, while keeping themselves relatively sheltered.

"I like him," Vitto grinned, showing two teeth longer than the rest. They had been surgically modified to resemble the fangs of a vampire.

Cringing, Caterina eventually followed Light. That didn't mean they were on better terms though – she sat at the opposite end of the couch, glaring arrows at both Light and Vitto. "I couldn't care less who you like. All I care about is how open would you be to renegotiate."

The moment he heard her, Light turned pale. He wasn't expecting that from her, which only made him more curious about what Caterina has been doing for the past three days. Vitto seemed just as surprised – Caterina managed to catch both off guard.

"Well?" she smiled. "Drinks would help ease the tension, wouldn't you agree?"

Tense but still smiling, Vitto shrugged. "Of course. What would you like? And please, do tell what you have to offer."

Chuckling, Caterina was playing with the gun in her right hand. "Me? Oh, I can offer you at least two things. One would feed your passion, the other would bloom your business. Question is… which should I offer?"

Light was boiling with rage. "Is that how low you've fallen, love?"

"I wouldn't push my luck if I were you, amore. Which reminds me, I think I've made up my mind. One Amore*, please!" Though she knew both Light and Vitto had seen her sweaty palms, Caterina kept playing her role as good as she could. "Well, Vittorio, let's go straight to business. Because by revealing the second part of the deal would involve Light more than I'd like, let's stick to the first half, shall we? For now, at least."

The man grinned and walked behind the bar to prepare her requested drink. "Is that so? What will feed my passion, then?"

Light was leaning towards Caterina. "What are you planning? We haven't discussed this."

"My plan, love, is to stay alive – whatever the price! You didn't even bother to come after me. You're a self-absorbed, egocentric, impulsive fraud who just happened to stumble over a gold mine of power. If you think I'm going to come crawling back to you, don't hold your breath waiting!"

Ryuk was hanging upside-down in between the two. _'See? I told you so!'_ he grinned towards Light. _'So what now?'_

As Light was trying to ignore the shinigami and think of a clever way to make Caterina return to his side, Vitto returned with her drink served in a fancy Y-shaped glass and garnished with freshly grounded coffee and three coffee beans. "Amore, mi amore!"

Caterina smiled and sipped from her drink. "A little strong, but excellent taste and texture. Have you ever considered focusing your attention on drinks and cocktails instead of prostitutes and fake paintings?"

Vitto leaned against the metal frame of the table. "Who knows what the Lord has in plan for me? I wouldn't mind being the devil's barman, for all I care!" he laughed. "But you still haven't answered."

"I won't bring you the treasure physically, but if you cooperate with me, I will give you clear and precise instructions on where to find it – the address and name of the bank, the account under which it's being kept and the password that will grant you access. All of this, perfectly legal and without any additional risk. Does it sound fair enough?"

Although he still didn't have all the pieces of the puzzles, Light was pretty close to guessing the bigger picture – somebody must have taken Caterina under his protection, which is exactly why she was so confident again and threatening him. How dare she?! After everything he's done for her! But more importantly, who was this mysterious figure messing up his plans? "Caterina, love… Won't you give me at least the chance to explain myself for earlier?" but the only response he received was a straight pointer signing him to be quiet. Kira felt the blood boiling in his veins, but did everything in his power to hide it.

Noticing, Vitto began to smirk. "Well, well – looks like the kitty has found a drop of the Dragon's blood! How very thrilling! Please go on, my sweet. What is this treasure you're willing to offer me?"

"A priceless offer, let me assure you. I can give you the key to an original wooden box from the Ming Dynasty. It's said to be a puzzle, unsolved for all of these years. The legend says the one who solves the puzzle and unlocks the box will find the most precious of jewels…" Caterina grinned, as Vitto's eyes widened and began to shine like those of a drunkard.

"The most precious of jewels, the likes of which had never been seen by man. I want it!" he leaned forward and took Caterina's hands into his own, making her drop her gun. "I want it, I want it, I want it, I want it! It's every collector's dream!" He stood up and began to spin in a chaotic waltz. "Oh, dear Lord, I knew you'd turn your face towards me!" He returned to their table and took Caterina by her left hand, leading her to the music he began to sing. "The jewel of jewels, the most precious stone~! I'd never imagine such a wonderful offer!"

"Wait a minute," Light interrupted the man's manifestation of joy, "How can you possibly have access to such an artifact?"

Suspicious, Vitto stopped to wait for an explanation. He should have asked that earlier.

"You'll simply have to trust the heir of the Dragon with this. If I gave you access to my resources, I'd become vulnerable again," Caterina smirked as she returned to the table and shamelessly gulped about half of her drink.

"Which means now, you're no longer vulnerable," Vitto concluded. "Very well, then! Dragonette, let's toast to a new beginning!" The man took a dark glass bottle from under the bar and raised it up. After Caterina raised her glass as well, he opened it and took a few generous mouthfuls of wine.

"Caterina, in all honesty, how could you leave me out of such an important deal?" Light tried to get under her skin. "Come now, you can't still be mad at me for being a little oblivious." He was watching her from his seat, widening his eyes and feeling them drying with every passing moment. "Cat? Come on, won't you even look at me now?"

But just as Caterina was about to give in and turn towards him, her phone rang. She immediately answered it and her face lit up. "Yes? Sure, I'll be there in two minutes. It went perfectly. I'll tell you more as soon as we meet." Even if Namikawa's tone wasn't the friendliest at the time, she pretended it was – if only to catch a glimpse of Light's heartbroken face. Light, with his big brown eyes, always playing innocent and sweet-talking her back into his arms, now left alone for the first time in his life.

 _'Looks like she really did leave you, huh? Your sister was right, then. Not even she wants to put up with your attitude,'_ Ryuk commented just as Caterina was waving goodbye and walking out the door without a second of hesitation. She just threw her fur coat over her shoulders in a rush and off she was, into the cold.

"Well, damn me if I understand her…" Kira mumbled, still staring after her.

"Women are not supposed to be understood. They're supposed to be loved, or used – depends on who you ask," Vitto sighed in the same note of nostalgia. "By the way, here's the check."

Shocked, Light refused to take the paper in his hand. "I didn't order anything!"

"No, but your woman did. Or… Whatever she is to you. Looks to me like she just threw you into the trash, young man."

Throwing him a glare, Light took out his wallet and paid for Caterina. "Shut up…"

 _'Heh. He's right, though,'_ Ryuk laughed along.

"Truth hurts, huh?" Vitto continued to turn the knife and drive it deeper into Light's heart. "Don't worry. You can always find another – prettier, easier, maybe even younger."

Standing up, Kira took his coat and walked towards the door. "If you're done wasting my time, I hope she screws you over, too."

"Too bad," the man smirked. "I was just about to make you an offer, but if you're not interested in _'shaking hands with a criminal'_ , I'll just find another who will."

"What kind of offer?" Light glanced over his shoulder back at the strange man leaning against the bar.

"An irresistible offer," he smirked. "If you have the time, let's discuss the details now – but I want an immediate answer, otherwise I'll have to kill you."

 _'Oh? What will you do now, Light?'_ the shinigami asked with the voice of pure enthusiasm.

In the meantime, Caterina was still feeling bad about her impulsive outburst from earlier. "Namikawa, I'm sorry. It came out the wrong way – I swear I didn't mean it like that!"

"What happened in there?" he asked in a cold and very unusual tone. He kept avoiding her eyes, even when they returned to his house. "It took you long enough."

"Vitto called Light too. I don't know why he did it – Light didn't seem to know I was going to be there. I made him the offer and he accepted, right before you called. Vitto toasted with wine and I, with coffee." She kept looking away as well, giving up trying to apologize and simply waiting to see a change of mood in him.

"I doubt that was wine you saw him drinking," he commented briefly.

She wanted to ask what was in the bottle if it wasn't wine, but the girl was too afraid she will use the wrong words and come off with a bad attitude. "Then… what was it?"

"What's his trade mark kill? Do you know?" The moment he was done speaking, Caterina realized what the answer was. She turned pale and felt her stomach turning. Her head was spinning and her legs weakened just as she was about to take off from the car.

"What a sick bastard!" she cried in a single breath, opening the door so the cold air could help her feel a little better. "I can't believe it… All this time, I thought he'd thrown it away – I never imagine he'd actually drink it!"

With a sigh, Namikawa walked over to her side and helped her out of the car. "Stop thinking about it, or you're going to upset your liver for no reason at all."

Yet, like most women, Caterina saw a chance to make him forgive her and forget about her earlier mistake. She leaned on his shoulder, trembling and rolling her eyes backwards. She was close to throwing up – this time, she was really feeling sick, but exaggerating it a little bit won't hurt, right?

If he noticed it or not, she couldn't be sure. Either way, Reiji carried her inside and laid her on one of the sofas in his living room. "I shouldn't have told you. If only I'd known how you were going to react…"

"I'm sorry, I just honestly believed that was wine! It looked so much like some very dark wine…" she nearly cried, trying to explain herself. "Oh, my! Now I understand what he meant that day!"

"When?" He brought her a glass of water with some freshly squeezed lemon juice still diffusing in it. "Did he threaten you?"

Caterina shook her head and took a few sips from the water. It was sour and it helped her, somewhat. "The first time I met him I went downstairs into the basement with Light. Vitto asked one of the guards, _'can she deliver another one?'_ or something like that, and the man went into a different room to fill his glass. And I think… before that, when we were still in the café, he told me I looked very pale, even if he hadn't _'tasted'_ me. I'm sure that's the word he used!" A cold chill of horror went down her spine.

The more she explored those feelings of weakness and vulnerability, the closer she felt to the man's warm and loving side – the one she met the first time she turned to him for help. Sick as she felt, it wasn't difficult for Caterina to notice his weakness – Namikawa was good on his own, but he seemed to want to be needed. It fed his ego whenever he could see her as some poor, fragile creature in need of protection, and that made him soften his stone hard exterior. Just like her father, he preferred others to depend on him and took great pride in this kind of hierarchy.

This time, he sat beside her and put a reassuring hand on her back. When Caterina leaned against his shoulder, he finally welcomed her into his arms – but there was no trace of possessiveness. Instead, he was calm and in complete control, waiting to see her reaction and trying to look like it didn't have any effect on him.

"He scares me…" Caterina said when the silence became too hard to tolerate. "The Snake didn't scare me. Not even Ross can, but Vitto certainly has something… evil about him. He gives me the wrong kind of chills."

"There's no reason why he should intimidate you so," he finally spoke in his usual voice and Caterina looked up with hopeful eyes and a little pout. "Vitto is crazier than the rest, but none of them are sane anyway. No sane man could ever live with himself knowing he's done half the things Vitto and those like him are proud to have done. You should stop thinking about him for now."

Caterina nodded, but remained in his arms. It reminded her of the times her father would hold her when she was scared – just enough to calm her down, but not tight enough to make her feel any kind of restraint. She was just as free in his arms as she was three meters away from him, and if she wanted to leave, she knew Namikawa wouldn't force her to stay. In a way, he seemed to understand her better than Light.

"I'll call in the morning and take three days off. Unless there is some kind of emergency requesting my immediate presence, I won't go to the office. I'll let you think about what you want to do during these three days, what do you say?"

The girl turned to face him and answered him with a small smile and a nod. "I'll think of something. Though I still don't know what you like, or how should I thank you for everything you've done so far…"

He shook his head slowly. "You don't have to do anything for me. Simply being here is enough." But his face seemed to light up with a little amusement when he heard her stomach grumbling. "I'm sorry, I'll go make something. Is there anything you'd prefer?"

"Oh, dear! I forgot about you," she chuckled in embarrassment and set her hand over her stomach. "Nothing in particular. I didn't know you cook, too."

"Only occasionally, when I don't have the time or the necessary disposition to go to a restaurant." The man stood and held out his hand for her. "Do you think you feel well enough to keep me company?"

"It's the least I can do." She stood up taking his hand.

"But I don't want you to do anything out of some made-up sense of debt or anything of that sort…"

Caterina laughed to herself. "Well, you don't seem so arrogant now. I'm starting to think this whole thing might actually work, in the end…"

"Arrogant? Really?" he asked, smiling in amusement as well. "Is that how I usually seem, or just your first impression of me?"

"How would I know?" she raised an eyebrow at him. Perhaps she should at least give him a chance. There didn't seem to be any downside to this possible partnership – what could possibly go wrong? Sure, he was a little arrogant and wanted her to constantly praise him as her protector, but it wouldn't be such a novelty to her. After all, she has been almost worshipping her father and perhaps if Light wouldn't have been so busy being Kira, she would have done that for him too.

In another part of the city, Light was lying in the bath tub in his family's house. It was the only way to escape his sister's constant mocking and Ryuk's uncomfortable questions. Although he tried, he couldn't get his mind off that half an hour with Caterina and Vitto. "Something to bloom his business…" he mumbled to himself. He wanted to crack the code that he was almost certain Vitto had understood without any problem, but couldn't conclude his long reasoning.

She could be talking about money, but Vitto was a greedy man who couldn't be pleased with as much as half of the Dragon's wealth – Light couldn't even imagine how that sum would look like on paper. Then, perhaps she meant ' _selling_ ' him a relationship – maybe a hitman? Or a hacker? Caterina said those were absolutely vital in this kind of ' _business_ '.

But there was something else – she mentioned it would involve him. Did that mean she would reveal his identity as Kira to a sick and twisted man like him, whose name Light could probably never find? It would be like sending him on the electric chair. Could she possibly be working with L now?

His head was spinning and pain washed over his brain in waves. Light sunk to the bottom of the bath tub, trying to clear his mind. As if dealing with L on his own wasn't already stressful enough! He sat up once he felt his lungs aching for air and pushed his hair back.

There was no way Caterina would betray him in such an obvious way. No… She'd rather watch him suffer. But then again, Vitto wouldn't want to kill him. If the man found out he was Kira, he'd most likely hire him under the threat of death or torture and ask him to kill on demand. The thought of that scenario made his skin crawl. It would have been his greatest downfall…

Suddenly, he heard his phone ring in the pocket of his pants. Sighing, Light reached out for a towel, dried his hands and picked up. "Yes?"

To his surprise, it was Midori. _'Hi… I hope I'm not bothering you. Um… I-I want to, uh… Would you mind going to the lake this evening? We need to talk!'_

Light rolled his eyes. What were they going to talk about this time? Ducks? "Don't take it the wrong way, but I've had a rough day. I'm kind of tired. Is it urgent?"

 _'Ah-um. I'm so sorry, Light! I should have said it earlier, but I wasn't allowed to and I… Well, I'm not entirely sure I should say it now, but… I-I mean, it should be fine, but I still don't want to say it on the phone. If you get mad at me, it's fine, I deserve it, but please, can we meet first?'_

"Fine. Look, why don't you take some time to calm down? I'll pick you up in an hour, if you say it's so important…" He didn't want to have her on his mind too, but the girl sounded like she was about to cry. As horrible as Caterina said he was, Light wasn't completely heartless.

As soon as he heard her confirmation, he hung up and let his phone fall over his clothes again. That girl had no idea what she was getting herself into… And she was too weak to last in the middle of such conflicts. Yagami made up his mind on the spot – he will distance himself from her as soon as the agents are out.

Actually, it would probably be best to get used to the idea of being on his own. A weak mind by his side would break down – to drag an innocent girl like Midori into his mess would be too cruel, even for him. A strong mind, on the other hand – that could easily turn into a threat, something that he didn't need. There were too many dangerous variables involved already.

Light rinsed, then dried himself. He checked his phone to see the hour of Midori's call and realized he was about ten minutes behind schedule. He got dressed in a rush and left.

On his way, he took the time to notice the beauty of the city in the evening. It was cold and the leaves on the ground were starting to freeze, as well as the windows of the cars parked alongside of the road. Whenever he exhaled, he could see his breath clearly in front of him. It was… relaxing. He breathed deeply and tried to let his worries go, focusing on the present moment. He sure needed it…

Perhaps he should thank Midori for almost forcing him to go on a walk. By the time he reached her home, he noticed his head ache was almost gone and he was much calmer than before.

Midori opened the door a few seconds later. She was just buttoning her mint green coat and had wrapped a large scarf around her neck, hiding almost half of her face in it. "Aren't you cold without a scarf or a hat?" was the first thing she asked.

Light shook his head. "I'm alright. What did you want to talk about?"

Because of the cold, he thought it acceptable for them both to keep their hands in their pockets, but as soon as they began to walk towards the park, Midori reached for his arm again. "I'm so sorry… I don't even know how I should say this! But he convinced me it was the right thing to do!"

"Go on," he encouraged her.

"Well, I… After I left the scene of the accident, the FBI agent who sat behind us on the bus caught up with me. He asked if I could assist him, since he had been under cover until he revealed his ID. At first, I was scared… But then he said no one should know about this." Midori was clutching his arm a little tighter.

"So he asked you to get close to me, right? Or did he straight up ask you to keep watch over me?" Even though Light didn't sound mad at her, he noticed the girl getting even more nervous. "Don't worry – I knew about it. I had no proof, of course, but I'd noticed him following me for the past few days. When we went out, he was nowhere to be seen – so I figured he must have found a substitute."

"But… the FBI, Light? Do you have any idea why?" The girl suddenly stopped, forcing him to do the same and face her. "Please tell me it was just a mistake!"

"Midori… Don't bother thinking about it. My father works on the Kira case and normally I shouldn't tell you this, but he said that L asked the FBI to supervise around two hundred possible suspects – even if the said person only matches half of the profile they've already created for Kira. It was just to check one of L's theories, which means it has nothing to do with me as an individual. Alright?"

This time, his smile came naturally. It was a small, tired smile – maybe even a little bitter, but it was honest. He was pitying Midori, so he wanted to set her mind at rest and convince her to go on with her ordinary life. There was no use for her to worry over him.

"So, then… does it mean you've been ruled out?"

Light nodded. "It was obviously a waste of their time. You should just forget about him. For all I know, that agent might even be out of Japan by now and off to another case."

 _'There you were! I've been looking for you,'_ Ryuk floated from inside a building. _'What are you doing with her again?'_

Midori smiled and walked into his arms. Light could tell that she was smiling brightly because of her puffy cheeks and the way her eyes had lit up instantly. "I knew there must have been some sort of mistake or misunderstanding. I never doubted you!"

For once, she actually made him feel a little better. Kira relaxed and set one hand over her back. "Thank you." Still, when it came to trust, one question remained – what did Vitto want from him? By declining the offer, he could leave the café in one piece, but this sense of insecurity was constantly somewhere in the back of his mind, nagging him whenever he tried to lower his guard.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock.**_

 _Let me remind you that reviews are always loved! Also, if you have any suggestions or if you spot any plot holes or anything you want to point out, feel free to do it either in the reviews section or through the PM feature._

 _If you feel this story deserved to be known better, please share it with your friends or with your readers._


	43. XLII - Spared

_XLII – Spared_

* * *

It was already New Year's Eve. For Light, the past two weeks had been passing him by like they would in a movie. He felt completely absent-minded when he carried out his plan and tricked Pember into killing his colleagues and himself. He almost felt like a spectator when he turned the clocks back by one hour everywhere in his house and even on Midori's phone, only to reset them all at the real time once the agents were ruled out. Midori, as well as his family, could have sworn that Light had been at home, in his room during the time when Pember died. Nobody noticed his trick, but somehow, he still couldn't set his mind at ease.

Even today, he had to make sure he covered all of his tracks. When he accidentally came upon Pember's fiancée, he set the scene up for her suicide – the only way he could shut her up before she spoke to an actual policeman. Coming back home, he still felt some heavy weight of uncertainty hanging from his neck. It was almost choking him at times.

Was he really turning into the Snake? That disgusting criminal with a sick, twisted sense of reality? The Snake, who he always despised and considered only a parasite of their society? Although his cheek had long lost its burning redness and the inside healed from the minor bruises it suffered when she slapped it between his teeth, he still felt the shock and the numb pain that followed. He almost missed the salty-sweet, metallic taste in his mouth.

Light pretended to have caught a cold, amplifying his usual evening tiredness. He quickly excused himself from the dinner table and climbed to his room.

 _'Are you alright, Light?'_ the shinigami asked.

Sighing, he threw himself on the bed. "…Do I look alright?"

 _'I don't know. Probably not. What's wrong?'_

Light kept staring at the ceiling. "Everything. I haven't heard from L in a while, but I'm sure he's working on the case. Vitto disappeared, yet he's still in town. I don't know if Caterina told anyone about Kira, or if she's even thinking about me at all. Should I kill her, too? I don't want to… I don't want her to die, just in case she comes back to her senses and returns to me. But I can't trust her to keep quiet forever. Besides, perhaps that would be unnecessary. Ruyk, am I turning into the Snake? Can I possibly become so rotten? I, the God of the New World?!"

He sat up, holding his head in his hands and pushing his hair back. It was a desperate attempt to order his mind, as if it had anything to do with his hair. Even so, it helped him calm down and see things more clearly when Caterina did it and perhaps, there was a distant time in his childhood when his mother used to do that, but he couldn't be certain. Light never was close to his family. He respected his father, he had some dose of gratefulness and respect for his mother and he tolerated his sister, but he couldn't say he loved any of them – not really. This thought made him wonder if he had ever loved anyone…

 _'Do you really want the answer to that?'_ the shinigami laughed. _'Because I don't really care. But you're not as entertaining when you're lying in bed, pretending to be sick.'_

Light chuckled. He was bitter, tired, and borderline depressed. "…I should've known. It's all entertainment to you, isn't it?" Light reached for the bottle of water he had been keeping by his bed for years, constantly replacing it every time it emptied. He twisted the cap and broke the seal. Whoever said that water was tasteless had never drank water from a plastic bottle – it was always tastier when fresh, only to become disgusting if left unsealed for too long.

It made him think about Kira's identity as he drank some water. Was Kira slowly changing his identity by adopting a few unorthodox ways? His goal had remained unchanged, so then should he even worry about the means? And, of course, there was Ryuk with his comments…

 _'Shouldn't you be celebrating, or something?'_

"Celebrate what?"

Ryuk was laying on his side in thin air. _'Oh, you know… Police officers butting out of the investigation, the agents being dead, that woman not talking to the police…'_

Light sighed heavily as he looked away. "I can't. It's just a battle won, not an entire war. I can still lose everything in the blink of an eye, just like-!" Choking on his words, he stood up and went to look over the street from his window. "Never mind."

 _'Just like your girlfriend?'_ the shinigami asked, sounding rather amused.

"I don't have a girlfriend."

 _'Because she left you, right?'_

Shooting him a murderous look, Light almost growled as he answered. "She did not. I left her." He had heartlessly shoved Midori off as soon as she served her purpose. Once the agents were dead and she had confirmed his alibi, he took her out again and told her… "I don't have the time for this. I'd rather focus on more important matters."

Just like Midori couldn't believe him, Ryuk was doubting his answer – except instead of crying, he was chuckling. _'You don't even believe yourself.'_

"Of course I do! And I am perfectly correct. There are more important things I could be doing instead of babysitting a little girl looking for attention." Just the thought of Midori talking for half an hour about types of sushi and condiments used made his blood rush faster in annoyance, slowly turning into anger. He even began to wonder if he wanted to hate the girl, or if it was just Caterina's ghost in the back of his mind constantly throwing dirt at Midori's image.

 _'I wasn't talking about Midori,'_ Ryuk suddenly pointed out, shuttering Light's anger in a second.

"…She will return to me, eventually. It's only a matter of time."

 _'You don't even say her name anymore. I don't get it – why does it affect you so much? You don't sleep, you barely eat, you write half as much; it's like your new goal is to break the record for lying in bed and pretending you're sick. I don't understand why.'_

Sitting at his desk again, Light began to write. "You want me to write? Watch as I'm filling the pages." He had a list of criminals in front of him on the computer left on since earlier that evening. "It gives me no satisfaction, for some reason…" he mumbled.

 _'What I don't understand is why?!'_ Ryuk asked again, but Light only sighed. At the same time, Vitto was in a similar situation.

"I must've told you a thousand times already – I changed my mind!" he shrugged, reaching for his glass. Its contents were still warm, filling the man's nose with a familiar scent before he took a sip. "Do you need a translator for that?"

 _'I'm not joking here, Vitto! We made a deal!'_ Ross was boiling with anger. He felt himself betrayed by the Italian's sudden change of heart.

"And just like the huntsman, I'm going to bring you the heart of a deer instead. Let her go – what do you care? You have many beautiful girls there – gorgeous, I must say! And very sweet, as well. I could send you ten from Moldova, they're already in the system since last month. Very beautiful, very obedient… They don't know Italian or English, but they don't need to know for this job, right?"

Ross slammed his hands on the table so hard, Vitto could see the laptop's camera shaking. _'I don't need any more prostitutes! I want that one girl! Do you understand?! I'll let you have 60% of the Dragon's fortune if you bring me his goddamned girl!'_

With a shrug, the Italian rubbed his forehead. "Look – there's nothing you could give me that will ever make me interested in this deal again. Just because her mother didn't choose you and ran off with the Dragon doesn't mean you must go after the daughter. It's absurd – listen to yourself."

 _'I didn't ask you for a history lesson! I asked you for that girl! And you're fucking useless! You incompetent!_ **I** _helped you make it out of that filthy countryside motel!'_

"Perdona, that was a four-star hotel with a restaurant. Your home is closer to resembling a _'filthy motel'_ than my first workplace," Vitto pointed out. "Dear Lord, I feel a headache coming…"

 _'You'll soon feel a bullet coming if you don't deliver the girl in three days!'_ the American growled, leaning closer to the camera.

Even so, the Italian shook his head. "Three days, you say? I'll think about it! Why don't you drink a glass of wine and smoke something of decent quality until then? It's not like you have anything better to do with your time, anyway."

 _'Why, you-!'_

"Because I know it works. Now if you don't mind, I must go to a very important meeting. Don't give yourself a heart attack in the meantime – I'm going to enjoy watching your execution." Vitto disconnected the laptop from the network so Ross would be left with no possibility of calling again or tracking down the device. He finished the drink from his glass and approached the girl his men had brought him this time.

She was healthy and well developed – not exceptionally beautiful, but strong. Tied to a chair and a little dizzy, the girl had a deep cut over her left wrist that had been cleaned and covered in bandages to stop the bleeding and give her some time to recover. She was just waking up, looking around in confusion.

"Hello, my sweet, sweet lady. What's your name?" the man asked her. He bent down to see her better. She had a pair of beautiful black eyes – such a shame her face was a bit too round with too many black spots and a huge nose. Her body was way stronger than the average built of a prostitute – or at least, of those that Vitto preferred. Some he saved from the _'donor's chair'_ , but those were few. Most girls only left the chair when their ability to regenerate was overwhelmed by Vitto's thirst.

Frowning, the girl tried to move. She still had the strength to make the chair wiggle a little bit. "Where am I…?" Her arm hurt and she could see her wrist bandaged.

"Your last destination, I'm afraid. You may consider this some sort of… purgatory, if you will," he smiled. "How are you feeling? Are you nauseous, or does your head ache?"

The girl thought for a moment. "My arm hurts. I'm numb…"

"Does it, now?" Frowning, he looked almost genuinely sorry for her. "I told them not to hurt you so badly. Do you need a painkiller?"

She slowly shook her head. "Why am I here?"

"Initially, you must have caught the attention of one of my men. Do you remember someone putting you to sleep?"

After a few moments, she began to remember flashes of her most recent memories. "…My sister's boyfriend? But they've been together for… one year?"

Vitto shrugged. "Possibly. I paid for you, so now you're mine. Do you understand? The drug he gave you has been out of your system for an hour now. I'm surprised you've woken up so soon – others take at least three hours."

"I don't understand…" she mumbled.

"You will, eventually. Please answer me this – if you have a young, inexperienced subordinate who makes a mistake that generates a cost, but his mistake is because of a client's spoiled child, what do you do?" He spoke calmly, patiently, articulating each word individually. Usually, he didn't bother asking because most looked too distracted by other things, like their surroundings. This girl, however – she didn't rush to call him names or try to scream for help. No… This girl was analyzing her situation.

"…Give me a concrete example. What kind of client?"

"Say, you're opening a restaurant. Your subordinate is a waiter – very hardworking and eager to learn, a great acquisition, but inexperienced and easily intimidated. Your client is a business partner, a loyal costumer, whose child managed to make the new waiter commit a mistake. Let's say that… he stumbled and dropped a tray full of plates, glasses and silverware, spilled the food and made a scene."

"It's the child's fault…" the girl began, "but if the parent allowed the child to behave that way, they are not going to correct the child anytime soon. Besides, I depend on the client. On the other hand, the waiter represents good working hand, and so if I fire them, another restaurant could hire them, treat them better and in a few months, make an excellent waiter out of him, which will mean I will be at a loss. I can't give away a certain worker for some uncertain replacement. I would ask him to clean up after himself, charge the entire company with the accidental cost so that everyone pays an insignificant part of the sum, and apologize to the client in a way that would make my restaurant look better than others."

"How?" Vitto was smiling. The girl thought well – better than some who already worked for him. She thought like he did.

"We – those running the restaurant – aim to take young waiters that we train ourselves, based on the restaurant's principles and based on our culture. This way, we create loyal professionals, who we always encourage to evolve, to perform better. Those who can make it through our gradually higher expectations are going to be promoted and rewarded, while those who make mistakes will be sanctioned. The waiter will stand some consequences, of course, but those are not to be known outside the company – just like the rewards."

"Very well! I like it." Vitto left his glass on a small round table beside the girl's chair. "Are you thirsty, my dear? Or hungry?"

"Both." The girl was hoping that maybe, while she's alone, she could knock off the glass from the table, fall with the chair and use a shard to cut the ropes holding her still.

"Will you tell me your name?"

Instead of an answer, she looked away. The girl was almost expecting him to get mad at her – maybe even to hit her – but Vitto did none of that. He stood up straight and sighed. "Fine, then. Be that way. But let me assure you that I still own you and that your life depends on me." The Italian turned his back on her.

"…Wait," the girl eventually said. "You still didn't tell me why am I here."

"To satisfy my thirst, of course," he walked out the door. Soon, two bodyguards entered the room to guard the girl. She had no chance of doing anything.

In a way, Caterina felt the same way. There was an auction on the third day of the year where Vitto was going to sell the puzzle he received from Namikawa's employee to the one capable of solving it. Everyone who wanted to try for two minutes had to pay one thousand dollars.

"An insignificant sum for a priceless occasion, let me assure you. I believe everyone can see this. Of course, for those of you who want to stand a better chance – you can buy yourselves ten minutes for just four thousand." Vitto couldn't believe the money he was making just ten minutes before he will announce the start of the contest.

He had organized a ball where he invited the wealthiest families of the world, the single percent of the planet's population who owned over ninety percent of the world's riches. They were from all over Europe, from the American continents and from the developed parts of Asia – so many, Vitto had to rent an entire hotel for them. It was amazing to see them all gathered in one place – in one building! His blood was running faster just from trying to estimate how much the lives of those on one floor were worth. Vitto couldn't count that far!

"Moreover, all of these gorgeous paintings that you can see around you and all of these splendid marble statues are all for sale. If you will stay with me until January the 6th, I'm going to organize a very special evening for a priceless diamond."

He had bodyguards guarding absolutely everything. They were among those invited, they were posing as personnel of the hotel, as well as wearing their uniforms and openly showing themselves as security guards. Nothing had to be stolen and no one had to die – any minor incident would stain his image for the rest of his life.

Of course, Caterina and Namikawa were invited as well – only for the first night, when the puzzle will be discussed. Still, they had their own table from where they could watch everyone interested as they paid their failure to solve the puzzle. The one they were supposed to solve was a fake – a wooden box with pieces glued in place so no one would be ever capable of solving it. Vitto was fooling everyone and vacuuming their pockets with an illusion.

"I still can't believe it's happening," the girl said as she was holding her hands on the table. She was shaking, feeling electric chills running through her entire nervous system. Her palms were tingling in excitement.

Namikawa was calm. He smiled softly as he reached out for her hand over the table. "You should. This auction is going to seal your first contract with one of your father's enemies. He is now on your side, and the best part is that you aren't the one paying him – they are."

Caterina shook her head. "He's on our side. All I did was talk, and even that was your work – you told me everything I needed to know in order to convince him that the deal is real."

"You convinced him, in the end. It's an important contribution, you'll see. Many pay others very generously exactly for this kind of jobs. Persuading others is not a piece of cake – the only reason it looked easy is because you were the one doing it."

She chuckled softly and looked away. "It's not my contract, it's ours." The moment of silence that followed could be taken as a mutual agreement. "Even so, Namikawa… What about Robert?" Caterina continued to use the same alias for Ross. "Certainly, he must have found out about this. He's the most dangerous of Padre's enemies, vicious and vengeful."

The man nodded slowly, thinking and calculating their new situation. "The last we heard of any contact between him and Victor was before Christmas. A lot could have happened in two weeks… When did you last hear about your contact on American soil? The one with the little boy with him, travelling…"

"Kane," the girl quickly found an alias for the King. "It was… December the 17th, or maybe the 18th. He said it would be too dangerous to help…" she waited for Namikawa to sign her that he understood she was referring to Light and herself, "because there was a suspicion that the FBI had gotten themselves involved. He said he didn't have enough resources to cover the risks."

"Do you think you can reach him? I believe it would be a good moment to start gathering everything you have. Everything we have, if you would refer to yourself and I as… not necessarily a couple, but perhaps a team. We are on the same side, after all."

A waiter approached them and took their order. Both of them stopped talking about anything important until the waiter was at least five meters away. The music will cover their conversation by then, making it safe to go on.

"How close do you think he is? Robert, I mean…"

Namikawa had to admit that he didn't have all the answers. "He could be anywhere, but you said it yourself that travelling is not his style. I think it's more probable for him to send other people ahead. Now, from what you said about him, he's very aggressive… Perhaps it would be a good idea to stay as close as possible in the following weeks. I'll see if you could come to the office with me. You don't have to stay with me personally, but that entire building is one of the safest in all of Japan."

To him, it was a surprise that she didn't reject the idea. To her, it was a perfectly rational decision. "Of course. If it won't be too much, I'd like you to show me around. I want to see what Padre left me. In the meantime, I'll get in touch with Kane and Junior and try to track down… the Spider," she almost whispered the name of the hacker.

He agreed with a soft smile. "I'm glad you think this way."

But suddenly, Caterina's face darkened. Some sort of shock and anger were burning in her eyes as she shot someone a glare. "He's one of the guards the Snake used," she mumbled quickly. "I knocked him out and tied his hands with his belt."

Confused, Namikawa followed her glance. "What are you talking about?"

"When we were caught, I tricked the Snake's woman. I told you about that, I stained my hands… I had to go someplace from where I could call for help. He surprised me, I knocked him out, I took his phone and his gun and called Mr. Ooi. He's the one, I'm sure of it." Caterina let go of the man's hand and made an incredibly bold gesture, one that she never thought herself capable of making. Keeping the eye contact, she pointed her finger downwards and tapped the table twice.

The man noticed and became a little agitated. "What are you doing, calling him here? You don't know who sent him here or if he can be trusted or not. I'm begging you, let's keep the path of reason and precaution."

"I'm not like my mother, Namikawa. I won't hide and wait for you to take care of everything – I'll do it myself. Besides, it's a public, crowded place with more security than a royal wedding. He won't be able to do anything. At the same time, he knows that we won't do anything either – it's a clear invitation for dialog. Perfectly reasonable." Although her voice was confident, Caterina had to run the palms of her hands over her forearms to make those annoying little hairs lay flat against her skin again.

The man was just as panicked. He looked around him several times to make sure he was the one who was being called, but the eye contact was unmistakable. The Dragon's daughter not only survived – she seemed to be thriving. It made him afraid, but curious at the same time. The man made his way to her table and bowed his head. "Miss…" he addressed her, since Caterina didn't have a wedding ring on either hand.

"You do remember how I've spared you, correct?" She didn't look at him at all. Instead, she was pretending to have more interesting things to analyze, like the crowd, her hands, or the bracelet around her wrist. She looked at Namikawa briefly – not for approval, but simply to see his reaction. He seemed calm and collected, but he couldn't keep his feet flat on the floor. Caterina felt his agitation underneath the table.

Their guest swallowed hard. He had been spared three times that day – by her, by the Snake and by the one who ordered the attack. "I remember." He decided he should answer her questions the way he would answer in front of the Snake – briefly, consistently, and without hesitation.

"Who sent you here?" she placed her next question.

"Rod Ross, miss."

"Are you working for him?"

"His subordinate, miss."

Caterina threw her partner another look. Namikawa was right in his assumptions –again. "Who?"

"Itachi Kitamura." When he saw Caterina rolling her eyes, he knew he should go on. "Head of the Kitamura family. His godson is the counselor of the national bank's governor, while his younger brother works closely to the chief of the national police."

"Is he here?" she asked, but the guard shook his head. "Why are you working for Ross?"

"The man who spared me the third time that day said he will take me to someone who will help me recuperate my identity. He promised me papers and a way out of Japan in exchange for exemplar behavior. I was to start a new life and-!"

"The essential?"

"I was tricked. You have a traitor among your people, miss. He sold me to Kitamura, who works with or for Ross. I am uncertain."

She nodded towards Namikawa. Ooi will be surprised to hear this and if it proved to be true, it could end in bloodshed. "Are you alone?" she asked, finally looking at the guard.

"No, miss. There are five others – two at the front entrance, two in the back and another one at the kitchen. When the cake is served, the fireworks will be replaced with explosives. Everyone is taken hostage and robbed. That is the order. There may be girls taken, as well as young boys. Back up is currently in this quarter, waiting for the countdown. It will be a fiasco."

Namikawa decided to step into their conversation. "If you wish to prove yourself useful, you will be rewarded generously. We need exactly half an hour before we will leave this building and Ross can carry out his plan."

"But-!" Caterina tried to protest, but Namikawa silenced her with one glance.

"In half an hour, you will help us leave the building unnoticed. I will tell you then where do we meet in order to talk about your reward in three days from now." The man stood up, offered his hand for Caterina to take, then walked past the guard without acknowledging his presence again. "We can take the original puzzle back."

"What about Vitto?" she asked in a hushed voice.

"Hopefully, he will suffocate and burn before he is captured. Death is easier than torture." Namikawa pulled Caterina by her hand so she will be standing in front of him. "I need you to convince the guards that Vitto sent you to bring the original for a special client."

Caterina smirked. "Not a problem." She was about to approach them, when one of them suddenly gasped, held his chest and threw his head backwards. He ripped off his shirt to reveal his scars, right before he crumbled to his knees and fell faced down. His colleague was next, clutching his gun and the door frame he was guarding. He groaned in pain, falling on his side and rolling his eyes back. At the other end of the room, another man was acting in a similar way.

This time, she had nothing to do with the timing – it was pure coincidence, right? But Caterina knew it was a unique chance that she had to take. She took advantage of the panic and the confusion setting among the guests to sneak into the room where Vitto said he had hidden the original wooden puzzle and took it from its pillow. When she walked out of the room, the guard grabbed her arm tightly and dragged her along.

"Please, trust me! I know you'd never murder anyone, miss – I believe in your innocence!" The man took her though several rooms until they reached the back exit. He kept hold of her arm and his eyes darkened.

"Make way. I have the girl."

The other two guards looked at each other and at the girl. One of them looked at a photograph before stepping out of their way. The other immediately called someone. "We have the girl, and she's carrying the puzzle… Yes, sir! Understood! We start the countdown, sir!"

The guard kept dragging her along, ignoring her protests for as long as he could. When they were far enough and Caterina was about to kick him, he eventually stopped. "Call your partner. I have a friend who works in the media. I asked him to write about the event tonight, complete with a list of criminals – their crimes, their names and their pictures. I knew Kira would help us, aware or not, because we are innocents! We're good, hardworking, honest people trapped in a web of evil and greed. Kira is our savior and our new God, miss! I'll stay with you until your protector comes."

Her eyes widened in shock. "They know you left with me! They probably called Kitamura, or worse – Ross! Are you insane? This is pure madness!"

A wide smile spread on his face. "It must have been Kira who made it so that I'd be spared three times in one day! Kira is my God, and I'm willing to die for justice. I know he spared me because he knows I am capable of good, and because I've never stolen or killed anyone in my life. Kira helped us earlier – he is on our side. Kira will repay your kindness, miss. We will be the martyrs of the New World!"

In truth, even if it was past midnight, Kira was working harder and harder. He kept turning the pages, filled with names on two columns. He had found an article on the internet talking about the party of the wealthy, along with the criminal record of each. He decided to start with the guards.

The thought that Caterina was there made his blood boil again and he finally felt the will to write. He felt the rush he got every time he cleaned the world of its scum and he wanted to curse his hand for not writing fast enough.

 _'Back in business, aren't we?'_

By the time he was done, Kira had three pages of immediate kills and two more of scheduled heart attacks. He leaned back in his chair with a pleased grin on his face. "Sure looks like it, doesn't it?"

 _'Yeah, it does. But why now?'_ Ryuk asked again.

"Isn't it obvious? Caterina will witness my power. Besides, with a bit of luck, I might have saved her life. She will owe me for that." Yawning, Light stood up, rubbed his back and his shoulders, then took off his shirt. He laid in bed, thinking about how he could use a massage at the moment. Sitting at a desk for several hours left him with a very annoying pain in his back and a certain stiffness of his shoulders. "Ryuk, remind me to accept the invitation the next time someone asks me to go play tennis. I could use a few hours of sport…"

 _'It's not like I never told you that before, but you never listen to me anyway,'_ the shinigami complained.

Sighing, Light dragged himself out of bed in order to turn off the light. "Perhaps because you always ruin my shortest moments of happiness…"

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock** , as usual._

 _Here's another update. It's still exams season here, and I think I'll focus more on my other stories and take at least one of them off the hiatus list and place it higher on my priorities list. So in case there will be another two weeks or so before the next update, now you know why._

 _Regardless, I'm still glad to see new people following the story or adding it to their favorites! I'm also looking forward to hearing from you through a review or a PM._


	44. XLIII - Oh, My Fake God!

_XLIII – Oh, My Fake God!_

* * *

The following day, Light woke up searching the right half of his bed for Caterina. Once he became aware of it, he frowned and sat up. It was late in the morning and he could have used some physical interaction, but he was alone. She left him because of his ego, his superior attitude, but was it really that bad? His sister has been teasing him about it ever since primary school, but his intelligence was a good reason to act prideful. He ran his hands over his face a few times.

Turning into the Snake… Was that even possible? Light crawled out of his bed and dragged his feet to the bathroom. He had to study for the entrance exams and he had to schedule crimes for a few days ahead – he had no time to think about Caterina. As he was washing his face, he promised himself he will try to contact Caterina and ask her out again after the entrance exams, just for the sake of setting his mind at ease – he knew very well he will be busier than he currently was.

Light sighed and decided to go see what's going on downstairs. It was quiet, but his mother and his sister had to be up. However, he found a note on the table that his breakfast was in the fridge on a plate and that Sayu needed to buy herself a dress for a friend's 16th birthday. He knew Sayu has been whining about it for two weeks now, making a tragedy out of the idea of wearing one of her other ten dresses. She needed a new one because high school girls were vicious and probably kept a secret data base where they checked where everyone's dress was on sale, who created its design, and if the girl had ever been seen wearing it before.

Sighing, he placed his breakfast in the microwave and then took it upstairs to his room. There was no point in sitting at the table by himself in the kitchen.

 _'So you're finally up, huh?'_ Ryuk appeared through a wall.

"Where have you been?" Light set the plate on his desk and turned on the computer.

The shinigami sat on his bed. _'Nowhere.'_

"You must have been somewhere," Light mumbled. He turned on his TV as well to watch the news as he ate his breakfast.

 _'Around,'_ it answered him just as vaguely. Ryuk seemed amused by their little game, but Light wasn't in the mood for that.

"You've seen something. What is it? Unless you want to go through this week without apples, you're going to tell me everything."

Frightened by the thought, the shinigami went closer to him. _'You don't mean that, right? I went to check on the surroundings. I saw Caterina with someone else.'_

His focus changed from the TV to Ryuk. "Who?"

 _'A man,'_ the creature laughed. _'They were in a car early this morning.'_

Light sighed. "Is that all you have to say?"

 _'Aren't you going to try to find out more?'_

"She probably hopes that by exposing herself with another, she will get a reaction from me – remember that she found out that I've been using Midori. We're both prideful enough to want the other to come begging. I'm sure it's just a matter of time until she gets tired of whoever he is and returns to me. Besides, the age difference between her parents is exactly why her mother never had a word in anything – Caterina hated that. She'd never stay in a relationship with some man older than her."

Even if Ryuk didn't ask, he still explained himself. He needed to hear his reasoning said aloud in order to force himself to believe it because in truth, he knew there was a good possibility he might have lost her for good. The only girl he knew who wasn't impressed by his looks, but acknowledged them. She didn't care for his status as the son of the police chief, she didn't try to explain his way of thinking with stereotypes about policemen as fathers and the strict discipline everyone else expected to be dominant in their household. She valued his mind and his sense of justice – simply that.

Light searched on the web for the article from last night. He wanted to see if he had missed anyone, but to his surprise, the article had vanished. Even the link he had bookmarked was now broken. The username of the writer didn't seem to exist anymore either and the entire site had only errors to display. _'Article not found,'_ or _'Link broken,'_ or _'Incorrect penname.'_

A bit confused, Light wrote down the penname and the site's address on an ordinary piece of paper and saved it for later. He left it in the cover of the Death Note, then began studying for the entrance exams. If his guess was correct, then the author of that article will appear again the next time an important event takes place.

For the rest of the day, Light kept studying different subjects. He had a strict schedule of alternating study time with breaks and with name writing, so he wouldn't tire his mind too much. He went down for lunch when his mother and his sister came back, then climbed back into his room.

 _'I'm bored,'_ Ryuk stated. _'All you do is read and write.'_

"You're right…" Kira sighed. "I think I'll go for a walk." He changed his clothes with others a little warmer. The weather man said it will be colder tonight and he didn't want to freeze too badly, though the cold air will probably feel like a blessing for his brain.

Ignoring Ryuk was becoming more of a reflex rather than the manifestation of his will and somehow, Light was attentive enough to his surrounding to avoid possible accidents, but a complete airhead about anything else. He didn't even want to know what he kept thinking about, but his mind was flying high most of the time. The only time he'd become more present than a sleepwalker was if someone shouted something on the street, or a car honk took him by surprise.

Before he knew it, Light was in the economic center of the city. The flashing lights of the hotels and the restaurants were making him dizzy, just like the scents in the air. As different doors opened and closed, he could feel the scent of different foods, perfume, tobacco, alcohol breaths and many others he couldn't differentiate. His eyes were tearing up because of the harsh wind, or that's what he was telling himself. The parasites of the world were all around him – the rich who were corrupted by greed, and the poor corrupted by need.

At some point, when he felt himself being watched, Light turned to see Caterina in the door of a tall building. She was talking to a young woman who smoked, both of them holding their arms close around their own bodies. The smoker's hand was red from the cold, slowly turning purple with every passing minute. She didn't notice it, but Caterina was no longer listening to her. The Italian was staring at Light with an expression he couldn't possibly decode. She didn't look mad at him, so maybe she felt hurt? But she was the one who left him, so he was the hurt one.

Light raised his hand in a salute. He was hesitating, but when he saw her smiling in the corner of her mouth, he dared to walk closer. He smirked when he saw how Caterina's new friend had the same fashion sense as her mother and dyed her hair the same way.

"I'm sorry, can you excuse me?" she asked her. "I won't take long."

"Alright. Do you want me to tell him about this?" the woman asked in return.

Caterina was tempted to ask her to lie, but she nodded. "Sure. It's just a small talk with a colleague from school, he's got no reason to worry. Besides, there are cameras."

Once the blonde left them, Caterina turned her attention on Light. He was smirking, walking towards her until she felt the window behind her. A rush of excitement ran down her spine, but Caterina tried to pretend it was the cold and nothing else.

"I'm guessing you found out about her and this is your way to draw my attention that I've made a mistake," Light said in a soft voice, a little rusty. He didn't want to look like he cared about her, but it was obvious he did.

Caterina chuckled and tried to pretend she didn't care to know about him. "I don't know what you're talking about."

"A class mate. I needed her to confirm an alibi – that was all. I've got rid of my problem, so how about we get back to your own?"

"Light, I'm taking care of myself." Caterina set one hand over his heart and pushed him away from her. "I'm waiting to see if one of them survived. Either way, I win – me, and those on my side."

"I'm still on your side, if you'll take me…" he took her hand from his chest and gave it a soft squeeze. "All I ask is that you come back by my side. We want the same thing, don't we?"

"Actually," she smiled, "I think I care more about the quality of my own life than the quality of billions of lives. A perfect world would be too boring for me, Light… I wouldn't fit in. You can try, but I'm going to fall with the rest of the rotten world."

Shocked, Light took her by the shoulders. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that everyone makes mistakes, Light!" She threw his hands off. "Even you – you'd be the only rotten one left, if you ever even win this pointless war. The Bible says that god already destroyed mankind once, aside from a single couple that's been judged as kind and honest. Evil is part of every man's very core. You can't change that… No matter how hard you try."

"But then… Do you suggest that I just step aside and let all of those vermin devour and plague our society further?!"

Caterina shook her head. "I don't suggest anything. You can go on, if you want, but be careful not to overdo it. You see… the world is fine the way it is. There's light and there's darkness; there's good and then there's evil. It's all in balance and this way, everyone can survive."

Kira frowned. "What do you mean? You don't usually talk this way. Something must have happened."

She looked away. "You do remember the Snake's last attempt to torture Padre and I, right?" When Light nodded, she went on. "One of his guards had been trying to turn his life around. He believed in you so badly, he praised you like a real god. He's been shot last night after he helped me escape and all he could do is beg a fake god to save his soul. You're going too far, Kira…" she whispered the last part. "Much too far."

"There are maniacs everywhere-!"

"There are forums and websites that claim you're a god, and you know it. You've showed these sites to me yourself. You encouraged this internet movement, but it's time to make it stop. People are dying because of this fake image you're promoting. It's pointless and plain cruel."

Light began to laugh. "But I'm not the one who shot him. He helped _you_ out, right? You're more guilty of his death than I am."

"You just don't get it, do you?" she snapped. "He planned everything that way, well aware he would be risking his life. He died begging Kira to save him!"

Light shrugged. "Too bad! What can I say? His time must have been up, anyway. I'm just glad we met."

She sighed heavily. "You're just as immature and self-centered as you were before."

"So now I'm immature?" he laughed. "I wasn't too immature for you when you were clinging to me and calling my name."

Caterina slapped him again. "Listen to yourself. You're beyond rude!"

His eyes darkened and he suddenly caught her wrists. "If you dare slap me again…!"

"What are you going to do? Let go of me already! There are cameras watching us and I doubt your father will be too proud of you now."

"What I do is my problem, not his. I won't tolerate that attitude from you!"

Caterina freed her hands. "Then, we're even. I should have known you would go that way. I should have listened to Padre long ago. You'll never know what to do with power because you've never had it before. The first taste is intoxicating if you're old enough to remember it, and for you, it will be your downfall. I tried to open your eyes, but you're not blind – you're ignorant, which is worse."

Scared this time he was really losing her for good, Light grabbed her by her hips and wrapped his arms around her waist. "Caterina… Please. Come on, let's start all over. We can talk these things through as we go, we'll find a way to meet in the middle."

She felt her heart breaking. It was the same trick she knew he was going to use, but that didn't make it any easier to walk away. "Please don't…! You're not going to change. You let me go once, you'll do it again. Don't try to act like you won't."

"That was a mistake! It took me too long," he mumbled by her ear, "I didn't see which way you went. I'm sorry, I never expected that. Come on, let's go back home. We'll figure things out, and we can help each other through. It'll be like in the beginning. We'll take over the world, turn our dreams into reality."

"Light…" she mumbled, letting her hands over his, "Your secret is safe with me. I'll take it to the grave, don't worry." Caterina threw his hands off and walked back inside, nodding towards him in front of the security guards.

"What?! But it's not just that! Caterina? Listen to me!" Light watched her walking away through the glass doors. He wanted to punch someone in the face and those guards around him looked perfect for that, but he decided a scene would only make it worse. Instead, he turned around, sighed and dragged his feet away by himself. He glared when one of the guards tried to lead him away. "I can walk on my own."

Light turned to look back once he was at the corner of the street and saw that building was the headquarters of the Yotsuba Group corporation. It was obvious to him that Caterina must have found some rich bastard to solve her problems with the mafia and keep her in a palace for the rest of her life, something like a golden cage. He was angry and disappointed, so he decided to take the long way home. This way, by the time his family will see him, he will be a little calmer.

At the same time, Caterina went up to the eighth floor. She wanted to cry, but couldn't let herself be seen by others. People talk, and when they don't know, they invent reasons and make up possible situations. She didn't need them coming up with rumors about her or about Namikawa, so she went into his office to cry quietly. He was in a meeting that was just about to end, but the girl only needed a few minutes to let it out.

In the apartment he rented on the eighth floor of a hotel the Dragon used to love, Vittorio wanted to cry as well. The auction was a disaster, he was broke, and his image was ruined. He was lucky to be alive, or perhaps damned. He sat on his knees in front of twelve paintings of Jesus and Mary, carefully set in gold and precious stones inside wooden frames carved manually.

He was holding the rosary in his hand so tightly, he could feel the beads crushing the fibers of his muscles and leaving their print on his skin. Hot tears were pouring from his eyes, even hotter than his face. His heart was racing like that of a bull about to be executed in the middle of an arena for the sake of the show. He couldn't help but feel he had been tricked just like a bull in entering an arena destined for his final act.

In one night, in less than an hour, Vitto had lost all of his contracts and was forced to disappear. But it won't last forever – once the bodies are identified, someone will figure out his is not among them. The thought of his enemies standing in line to torture him was terrifying and he was praying to his Catholic God to save his soul. He asked God for a piece of advice, for an opportunity to change. He was willing to give up vampirism and illegal business – he'd give up his girls and set them all free! There was nothing in the world he wouldn't do for the chance to live the rest of his life by God's law.

Even so… there were only two thoughts in his mind. One was suicide, which was against God's law. The other was returning the favor, which wasn't against the first part of God's law. If the afterlife was the way he had been taught it was, he could definitely defend himself in front of God – after all, what other options does he have? He will get back at Ross with the help of the Dragon's daughter and her partner, her lover, or whatever he was to her.

Vitto picked up the phone and dialed the girl's number. She must have gotten out alive. The man listened to the tone that meant her phone was ringing… And ringing… And ringing, until a robot answered with the usual message: _'The person you try to call is not available. Please check the number, or try to-!'_

The Italian hung up. He waited for a few seconds, then dialed the number again. He called three times, then five, until eventually, Caterina picked up.

 _'What do you want?'_ She sounded angry and her voice had that uneven pitch that made him think the girl had been crying.

"An address, amore. Please, tell me where can we meet up again – all three of us, of course. I don't mind if your partner comes along. You're free to choose the terms, just please, let us have a talk."

 _'…You're broke, Vitto. Would you have any interest in me if I were broke?'_

The man didn't reply. He let his head bow like a child lectured by his mother, incapable of defending himself. He couldn't even justify his behavior because in truth, money was the only thing that mattered. Art was glorious and girls made his days sweeter, but he couldn't have any without money. He praised intelligence and beauty, but those were worthless without money.

 _'Do you have anything else to offer?'_ he heard her asking after a long period of silence.

Vitto quickly thought about his fortune, or what was left of it. "I might get a few contracts back, if I can borrow some money…"

 _'I hate uncertainty and he hates uselessness.'_

"Wait! I'm sure I can get a few connections back, I'm certain! I just need a little loan, you know, for the immediate moment. I'll pay it back in a month – no, a week. You can't let them get me!"

 _'If you want the easier way out, you need to give me everything you still have. Your girls, your guards, your torturers, your paintings, your jewelry, your houses – absolutely everything. We'll see if they all worth enough for us to become associates. Also, I'd like to know your name. I'm going to drop by at your café tonight. You better not disappoint me.'_

His eyes widened in joy. He was being given a second chance! "Anything, my dear! Absolutely anything! But I don't have a lawyer…"

 _'Leave that to me.'_ Caterina hung up. She dried her tears and went to the bathroom in order to make sure she showed no signs of female weakness. She kept her hands in cold water, covered her eyes with them so the redness would fade, then shook her auburn curls a bit to give them more volume. No one had to know that she just cried like a baby, holding her own head and nearly scratching out her heart for hurting so bad.

In the meantime, Light had found a different way of dealing with the ache of rejection. He called Midori and went to visit her. He excused himself for the late hour in front of her parents, impatient to be showed to the girl's room. Kira didn't even bother to tell Ryuk to find himself some other source of entertainment – he no longer cared if Midori would be seen in any way. It didn't matter.

What mattered was for him to keep playing the broken-hearted good boy finding refuge in a girl's arms. He wasn't that far from his role, and that made him more believable. No girl in town would have turned him down when he looked at her with those soft brown eyes, sighing heavily and clinging to her like the end of the world was just seconds away. He knew how to make a girl feel grateful he was using her, talking of his great love and how he has nowhere else to go. He could pose as Prince Charming to get what he wanted, and that evening, it didn't take him more than three hours to do that.

However, whenever she opened her mouth to say anything other than his name, Midori brought him back from his fantasy of Caterina. That alone was a good enough reason for Light to leave her in pain to cover up the tracks of their adventure. Kira left as soon as he was done, a little less tense than before. He denied the offer of staying for dinner and lied to the girl's family that they just watched a movie – it came naturally to his mind.

As he was walking home, he found himself smirking.

 _'Aren't you going to kill her anymore?'_ Ryuk asked, amused by Light contradicting himself.

"I don't think so. She's too naïve to get in the way. I think she could help me kill some time every now and then."

 _'Is that all?'_ the creature asked again.

"Of course. I'm going to use her, for now. If she gets any smarter with time, she might have a chance, but until then… She doesn't need a brilliant mind in bed, she just needs to trust me. She's great at that."

By the time Namikawa was done negotiating with Ooi and the rest of the vice-presidents, he found Caterina talking to his secretary and asking her to call up a lawyer immediately at a certain address.

"Has something happened?" He was hoping for some sort of reassurance. Although he wouldn't admit, the man was mentally exhausted after such a long meeting. There were interests of different departments conflicting each other and they had to meet in the middle. All that and one of the vice-presidents being a complete moron was enough to make his head spin and stretch out his nerves.

Caterina turned and crossed her arms over her chest, framing it without the intention of drawing attention. She saw Ooi walking out of the conference room and they made a short and acid eye contact. "It has. Can we leave now? You've stayed almost one hour past your schedule anyway," she pointed out on a kind tone. It was better for both of them to be kind around each other.

"Of course." He went into his office to drop some papers on the desk and quickly grabbed his coat and hers. Namikawa then returned for her and led Caterina down to the ground floor and out into the parking lot. "Why were you asking for a lawyer?"

The Italian got into the car, taking the passenger seat. "Vitto survived, but he's frightened by Ross – terrified, rather. Not only we took back the puzzle from him, but he's going to donate everything he still owns to us."

The man smirked in the corner of his mouth, driving her to the café. "So, his situation is that severe…"

When they reached the set meeting place, it was already half past ten. Vitto was pacing the underground level of his café, mumbling to himself and staring intently at the paintings covering his walls. When he noticed Caterina and Namikawa descending the stairway, he jumped and looked up with the panic of a hare surprised by the lights of a car. "Finally! Not that I'd be impatient – how very disrespectful of me. Welcome, please, have a seat. Can I make you a drink? Anything you'd like."

Namikawa invited Caterina to have a seat in one of the armchairs as he took the couch. Vitto was left standing on his feet. "The lawyer should be here any moment. What do you have?"

"My, I should have printed two…!" the man gasped once he realized he had only one list printed.

"It's alright, calm down. Please read," Caterina offered him the solution.

"Yes! How come I haven't thought of that? Brilliant!" Vitto ran a hand through his unkept dark curls and pushed a few back, only for them to fall back over his forehead. "So, I have a house in Torino and two apartments, a villa in Naples and a restaurant, two bars in Sicily, an apartment with four rooms in Ibiza…"

"Count your brothels too," Caterina asked. "I want to know your worth down to the last cent."

Just then, the lawyer showed up as well. He was a bald old man, dry like a raisin and with the thin, long nose of a wizard. His eyes were shining in the back of their sockets with the green shade of the American dollars. "I apologize for being late, Reiji. I will assume this is your newest associate?"

Caterina stood up and offered to shake the old man's hand. "The heir of the Dragon. It's me who called you, sir."

His thick eyebrows rose in surprise. "A pleasure, then." He looked her up and down, quickly judging her as a spoiled little brat. With a bit of patience and his experience in manipulating people, the lawyer thought he could overcome her and take over her fortune. First, he will ask her to name him legal administrator of the most important actives, then keep fooling the girl until he was going to become the owner of those actives. He will only leave her the debts – he had no use for those. "Satori Yukimura." He held her hand tightly for a moment, then let it go. "So, what do we have here?"

Namikawa stood up and invited the lawyer to sit beside him. He took the list from Vitto's hands and set it in front of Yukimura. "This gentleman is willing to donate everything here."

"To who?" the lawyer asked.

"Namikawa, or myself. How do you advise us?" the girl asked as Vitto was on the verge of tears.

"I believe it would be better if we took one half for each of us," Namikawa smiled. Even so, there was a hint of greed in his eyes.

"Most of these properties are just simply objects. They produce nothing – you're wasting your time, Reiji. He must be mocking you with such stupidities. Houses! Flats!" the lawyer laughed. "Paintings from artist nobody knows – no-name street brats, I assume. It's ridiculous! You should be offended. What's this, a ruby ring worth just one hundred fifty Euros?! My wife's buried with more valuable rings on her hands! A seven year old limousine? Is it second-hand, or was it on sale?"

Caterina chuckled, amused by the way the old man was mocking Vitto. "Say, Vittorio, do you have anything valuable to give?"

"I can invest-… I mean, you can invest in these and transform them into something more valuable. You can turn a villa into a hotel, a flat can be rented, a bar or a café can-!"

"Oh, yes, of course. Let's buy a ruin and invest in it until it magically turns into a palace," Yukimura laughed some more.

"The Dragon began by opening a bar!" the Italian quickly snapped back.

Caterina grinned. "Yes, that was… how many years ago? Twenty-five? Thirty?"

Smiling, Namikawa cough in his fist. "Please, sir… Make the papers. Let's sign and then leave this dungeon. It's only a formality – we already took a decision."

Yukimura took out his laptop from its sleeve and turned it on. "Very well," the old man sighed, "although I am certain the Dragon gave you more money for your own entertainment during a year, my dear." He looked up from the screen to Caterina.

"Let's hurry." This time, it was Vitto giving the order. "Well? Can we discuss the details of our deal?"

Because of the agitation, the girl on the donor's chair woke up again. Drugged up, dizzy and with a killer headache, she looked through the arch that replaced the door and saw the meeting taking place. The curtain usually blocking her view had been forgotten on one side of the arch. "What's going on?" she asked, as loud as she could.

Everyone looked up and Vitto swallowed his saliva hard. It felt like swallowing a rock. How come she was awake?

"What are you not telling us, Vitto?" Caterina grinned. She stood up and began pacing the room slowly. "I thought I asked for your human resources as well."

"She's not a prostitute – you don't want her!" the man quickly said. He became nervous, rushing to block Caterina's view. "She's nobody!"

Namikawa sighed. He didn't expect to come face to face with prisoners. "Are you kidnapping girls now? Is hiring them too expensive?" The main difference was an ethical one – while some would willingly sell their bodies for money, drugs, presents and such, others were being forced into the industry. The Dragon never accepted forced prostitutes anywhere near him or his associates, so Reiji had been brought up respecting everyone's right to choose the type of lifestyle they wanted.

Vitto knew of the philosophy of the Dragon. He knew it was one of the criteria by which the dead man had been selecting his associates and business partners. It was one of the major conflicts he had with Ross. "I-I'd never do that!"

Caterina walked past him, as the lawyer stood up and followed her. "She's not thin enough to become a prostitute for the wealthy and forcing her to do it with every filthy man on the street is beyond cruel and disgusting… Though what you're actually doing is more disgusting." Caterina saw the girl's bloody wrist covered in old bandages and her lost glance.

"He said I should satisfy his thirst. He's not interested in my body, but in my blood. He said I'm strong enough to last him one or two days more than others," the girl confessed. She was at the point where anything happening was fine. She didn't care if those people were from the police or from the mafia, if she will be killed or beaten for her answers. She was too numb to feel any pain and she felt like she was about to pass out any moment.

Yukimura threw Vitto an ironic smirk. "If you need the hostage, Namikawa, we can arrange her new identity. If not, we can still place Vitto in prison for kidnapping, physical and psychological abuse, and vampirism. It's a rare case that will bring us some money out of publicity. The media will love it! Also, you can use it to build your public image as her savior."

The businessman smiled in the corner of his mouth and looked at Caterina. "Please find out if she can be of any use to us, my dear."

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock,** as usual. I've got another two chapters or so written already, so expect updates every week or so. Also, what do you think? Should I post this story on Wattpad as well? Is there any chance it will be appreciated there and get some more exposure? I'm asking because I don't know if the DN fandom is on Wattpad or what kind of readers are on that site. _

_If that does happen, I will be also retouching the previous chapters. I really hope I'll be hearing from my readers again._

 _P.S. Does anyone miss Misa?_


	45. XLIV - An Irresistible Offer

_XLIV – An Irresistible Offer_

* * *

Once the winter break was over, Light had to return to school. He met with his classmates, ignored Ryuk, and gave a few answers in class. He's been lucky, for once in a while – he answered a difficult question in a flash once the teacher promised a bonus of ten points for the end of the semester exam. He's been going to Physics just for the sake of being in class. Light was way ahead of his colleagues, which meant he was bored most of the time. It also meant he could steal those ten points in less than ten seconds.

After the classes were done, he stopped to play some tennis with three of the school's best tennis players. Of course, he kept playing nice so they could play again sometime. Light didn't hit the ball as hard as he could, nor did he bother to calculate the angles and the time his opponents would need to reach the ball. He estimated the angles and kept serving them easy hits. He was playing for the physical exercise, not to prove himself superior.

"So you broke up with Midori, too?" his teammate asked while the opposite team was preparing to serve.

"I did… sort of. We're on a break. I barely have time for her anymore and she doesn't like that, so if she wants to see someone else, I'm fine with it," he explained as the ball was flying towards him. Light hit it without any effort, sending it back.

His teammate looked surprised. "She turned me down, that's why I'm asking. So you're not still in a relationship, right?"

"It's more of an open relationship, if you want… We're more than friends, but not exactly in a relationship. Though if you want me to ask her to date you, I'm not going to do that." When Light saw his teammate losing a point, too distracted to play, he began to laugh. "Not for free, anyway."

"The next tournament is in March. I can't pay anything until then, you know?"

Light thought for a moment. "Perhaps there's something else you could do for me. I'll tell you in a couple of days. We'll keep in touch, right?"

The other smiled brightly. "Of course. Thanks! You know, I've been trying to get to her for a whole semester, but Midori only sees you… It's frustrating sometimes."

"I know what you mean," Light smirked. "Believe me, I know…"

"You?! No way! There's no one standing in front of you."

"There is, actually. You remember Cat, right?" Light grinned, serving a bit too strong for his opponents.

"Wait a second. Are you trying to tell me that you've got competition? _You_?" His colleague began to laugh.

"I do! It's true. And it's pretty bad, too. He's a few years older, with a career, from a rich family and climbing the social ladder faster than an escalator. And in the mean time, I'm still here, trying to make time for every project and exam at the end of the year…"

The other whistled. "You're fried, man! Just give her up and get another. If she wants to run off with Prince Charming, there's not much you can do about it. I bet there will be tons of pretty girls in college and there must be at least a few of them a little more exotic. I mean, it's college, right? Students come here from all over the world. Maybe you get lucky with an American – I heard they're good and pretty easy."

Light laughed a little. "Yeah, I guess… Who knows? I'm not really into tan skin and bleached hair though. I guess I'll look for a European." Of course, his team won almost all the sets, losing just one. Either way, Light was pleased to win the match and a favor as well.

He went to grab his school bag and then left. On his way home, Light had a strange feeling, some unexplained suspense. Something was about to happen, but he had no clue about it. Eventually, he reached his house and tried to open the door, expecting it to swing back and welcome him like it always would. Only today, the door remained rigid and locked. "That's strange…" he mumbled, as he reached in the pocket of his school bag for the key.

Light unlocked the door and turned on the light in the hallway before stepping inside. "I'm home," he called. "Mom? Sayu?" but nobody answered. "Even stranger…"

Walking to the kitchen, he saw no one. All the lights were off, the TV too. Light climbed upstairs, when three details caught his attention. A thin pencil lead was on the cream colored carpet. The handle of his door was perfectly straight. Also, the paper was back in between the door and its frame.

Light took out the paper and entered the room. Picking up the pencil lead would have drawn someone's attention. It only took him a second to realize that someone's been in his room, someone other than his mother or sister. Considering his father was working on the Kira case with L and that he hasn't heard anything new from L in a while… this might be L's turn to make a move. Light already suspected surveillance cameras and microphones having been installed during the time when the house has been empty.

The team had to leave everything untouched, so of course, they noticed the paper and put it back at the same height as before. His mother or his sister wouldn't have noticed it. But the door handle and the pencil lead went past unnoticed, so they remained deranged from their initial position.

Kira threw his bag off his shoulder and laid in bed, sighing. He's had a rough day… He looked at his phone and called Midori. This was a great occasion for some relaxation and it would be one of the first things on any teenager's mind.

"Hi, how are you? I'm sorry for the day before… Yeah, I know," he whined. "Listen, do you want to come over? I'll be home alone for a few hours. No, I've got no idea. I think they went to choose Sayu's dress for the end of the school year's ball. You know, she wants to come to the graduation ball because she's my sister and all that… Silly, right? But I said I'll keep an eye on her." Light stretched his arms, one at a time, so he could still keep the phone pressed against his ear. "Sure, if you have one you want to see. By the way, do you want to order something to eat? Okay. That's fine, too. Sure. Take care."

 _'Hey, Light? Why are you calling her over? Didn't you just promise her to that other guy?'_ but Ryuk got ignored again. Not even a look or a gesture. _'Light?! Hey! Answer me!'_

Instead, Light took his shirt off and arched his back a little. He looked through the papers in his drawer and found a flyer of a restaurant with the number and menu for their delivery service. He called and ordered the food Midori wanted, then wrote down the hour when they were supposed to reach his address. If the delivery boy was late with over five minutes, they could get the order for free.

 _'Light! What's going on? You don't even look at me. Light! What's this about? I don't get it,'_ the shinigami kept wondering.

Of course, Light kept ignoring the creature. It was much too risky talking to him before he knew exactly how many cameras and microphones were there in his house and their precise place. For once, he felt a bit nervous about Midori being at his place, but perhaps that will make the surveillance stop. It was all or nothing and he couldn't risk changing his behavior because of that – L would definitely notice.

He could be certain that his father was watching the cameras as well… Maybe others. Honestly, he doubted the legal character of such measures, but L was probably so esteemed by the police, he could get away with it. He kept wondering why would he be supervised that way, when it suddenly hit him. He remembered the leaking information he has been using, which meant that more families were in the same situation.

How many could L keep under watch at once? Was it possible to gather all of those cameras in one room? What would Caterina say…? Light sat at his desk and began to write down the events from the past month on a clean page in a normal school notebook. The major ones that L would know about were the information leakage, the FBI agents, and possibly the experiments he's done right before that. Could he have come across some lead pointing towards Reiji's death?

Light closed the notebook and threw it back in his bag once he heard the door bell ring. He rushed downstairs to greet Midori. "I've missed you," he mumbled as he held her tightly in the doorway.

The girl was confused, even if she clung to him like her life depended on that. In a way, it kind of did, but she had no idea about it. "Light… really?"

He let her step in and take off her shoes. "Of course. I'm so sorry about this, but it's stressing me out… You know, the finals, the entrance exams… I need to graduate with a high score and repeat the performance at the entrance exams so I can get where I want to get."

"Well… what university do you want?" she asked, carrying the conversation simply because it was less scary than talking about their relationship.

"To-Oh. I'll study law there and then, continue with a Master's Degree. I think I'm not going to stop at working in the police, you know? I want to be a judge."

Midori looked impressed. "Wait. Did you talk about it with your dad? I mean, the entire school expects you to go to the Police Academy, not law school."

"Well, not yet, but I don't think he'll be against it," Light smiled and scratched the back of his neck. "I mean, I respect his work and all, but I want something more. I heard the pay is better, but the responsibility and the stress levels are pretty much the same. It's no striking difference."

"Really? Um…" Midori looked up the stairs and down the hall. Were they going to his room already, or staying in the living room?

"Wherever you want." Light smiled. "Feel free to make yourself at home."

The girl thought it would be safer in the living room. "Light, I'm… I'm unsure. Are we still, or…?"

"I don't want to keep you waiting for me. I've barely got any time for you at all. Even now, I studied late in the past two days so I could get a couple of hours free now," he whined. "You really shouldn't wait, you're beautiful and you could find yourself someone with more time than me. Even in college, I'll spend most of my time studying, you know…?"

"I could wait, if you say we'll be together." Midori turned to face him, even if she was afraid of his reaction.

Light sighed heavily. It was frustrating how much she could get attached to him in such a short time. "If I get to work as a judge, I'll have to work a lot – sixteen, maybe eighteen hours a day. That's the way you get others to notice you, to trust you and give you more cases. It's tons of hard work to get at the very top, and then I'll have to work to stay there."

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Then why not just be a policeman? You get your weekends off, at least."

"My dad rarely does. Whenever there's a complicated, difficult case he keeps working for days on end. When that happens, mom sends Sayu or me to bring him lunch at his office. He barely has time to eat and we see him… once or twice in two weeks, perhaps?" Light sighed. "And even then, he's so tired, he just eats and goes to sleep." Light was hoping he could hit a sensitive cord with that argument. It was close to the reality, especially since the Kira case investigation has been taken over by L.

Soon, the delivery boy rang the bell and Light went to receive the order. He opened the door, took the two menus and the desserts, then the delivery boy gave him a letter as well. Although he didn't know who could possibly send him something like that, he hid it under his shirt and fixed it under the belt of his pants. He couldn't let L see that he received anything other than the order.

Light paid, then stared after the car. He remembered the plate number. Strangely enough, the car didn't have the company's commercials on it. "Do you mind setting the table?" he asked Midori, who was already in the kitchen.

Caterina eventually convinced Namikawa to rent an apartment at the top floor of a hotel. It was only for a while – they didn't set a certain date for when to return home, but Caterina kept saying that she missed living in such a place.

"We could buy such an apartment and have it designed for you," he offered. They had ordered lunch there and were now sitting on the balcony, watching over the city.

Caterina leaned in her seat. She couldn't take her eyes away from the view she didn't previously appreciate for its true beauty. "I know, I know, it's not economic… But I get bored so easily! I'm not used to living in the same place for long."

"Redecorating every now and then would still cost less than paying a rent like this every month."

She sighed. "I'll think about it. So, I've talked to the girl – Rin, but that's probably not her real name. She's good with computers and asked for video games to pass the time. And spicy food. She broke into the hotel's data base in two minutes and left without leaving a trace. She broke into the security system of a supermarket and showed me what was going on through the surveillance cameras, then left just as discreetly. I think we should keep her around, what do you say?"

Namikawa thought about it for a while. "She could prove dangerous if someone else hires her… She's the nerdy type, I assume…?"

Chuckling, Caterina nodded. "Definitely. I think we could buy her with some last edition games and VIP passes to comic cons, movie premieres, and other events. Rin smokes though… She's going to need money for that. Cigarettes are expensive, if you sum it up…"

"How much can a high school girl smoke?" he asked, ironic.

"Middle school, you mean. Half a pack every day. And she wants to drop out, because she says the educational system is too slow for her learning pace." The man threw her a suspicious look, but Caterina shrugged. "Not my body, not my choices…"

"Correct, but that's still too much for her age."

"Remember why I didn't get along with Mr. Ooi. Let's just trust her to do her job. She seems good at it."

Namikawa nodded. "The Yotsuba group could overpower the other companies on the market if Rin provides us with the right information. At the same time, we'll be two steps ahead of Ross."

Caterina smiled. "Have you heard anything from Vitto lately?"

Her question made a sly smirk spread over his face. "I think we might get ourselves a driver, after all…"

Caterina chuckled. "I thought you said you liked driving."

"Wouldn't it be absolutely humiliating if we spared Vitto and kept him as a servant?"

"You talk as if he was a pet. He's not handsome enough – which is odd, for an Italian. You know they've got themselves the reputation as the best lovers in the world."

Namikawa raised an eyebrow. "Weren't those French?"

"They're the best kissers, or that's what magazines, films, and literature aimed at women had all been claiming since forever. Well, not really forever – just during the modern era."

"You don't seem very interested in Italians or Frenchmen, though," he grinned.

The girl rolled her eyes with a smile. _'He could pass for an Italian…'_ Vitto's words about Light crossed her mind, making her curse that smile on her face. It wasn't a smile meant for Namikawa's jokes, it was a smile meant for Light, which found its way to the surface. She shook her head slowly, trying to bring herself into the present moment. She couldn't be with one man and think of another.

At the same time, a wicked grin was spreading over Light's face. He had walked Midori home because she was suddenly too nervous around him, and so, he caught a moment away from the cameras. On his way back, Light took out the letter and unfolded it. The envelope wasn't signed, but the letter was. It said,

 _'I hope you found the food hot enough. I dared ask one of my messengers to intervene and deliver this letter as well. Yagami the young, I have knowledge of your family, of your close friends, of your school and classmates. If you refuse, I will torture them one by one and publish the images in the media._

 _I also have knowledge about your ex girlfriend, the daughter of the Dragon. As we both know, she is currently with another – Reiji Namikawa, Vice President of sales at the Yotsuba Group corporation, the Asian branch._

 _The company's European branch is messing with my affairs. Your job from the moment you have opened this letter is to wreck havoc in the Asian branch, which you realize will be to my advantage. In exchange, you will be paid as much as you say you need for each action and an extra every month, determined by your results._

 _Unlike others, the daughter of the Dragon does not interest me the slightest. This can be a very profitable affair for both of us, as you can see. If you agree, write your bank account, email address and phone number on the back of this letter. After that, you will leave it by the grand fountain in the central park, on the bench with one board missing._

 _If you do not do this by sunrise, I will consider that you've declined the offer and you will stand the consequences. You should know better than to mock me._

 _Best regards,_

 _Ivan Frost.'_

Light read it several times – he couldn't possibly get luckier than that. Ryuk could barely wait for some clarifications.

"Ryuk, listen to me well," he said in a low voice, as he walked through the streets. "L is most likely trying to get me. I bet there are cameras and microphones in the house, so I want you to locate every single one of them."

 _'Why would I do that?'_

Light chuckled. "If you're lucky, you can find yourself a blind spot where you could eat an apple every now and then. Otherwise… You can't starve to death, so it doesn't matter."

The shinigami freaked out. _'What do you mean, it doesn't matter?! I'll find every single one of those!'_

"Good." Light waited for the train to pass so he could continue his walk home. The barrier signed them that a train was near.

 _'Light… What about that letter?'_

"It's an offer. It turns out, I'm going to ruin that Reiji and get paid for it. Even better – at the end, I get Caterina too." His blood was boiling with excitement. "Actually, I think I'll go now." Light turned around and walked back towards the city, heading for the park. He always had a pen with him. He also knew his bank account by heart – he had opened one because the school only paid him the scholarship through the bank.

 _'Doesn't that make you a criminal?'_ the creature asked, flying faster to keep up.

"Me?! Never. I'm not going to kill Reiji – I'm going to corner him and ruin him, so that Caterina sees my true power and returns to me."

That evening, after leaving the envelope, he went home and went on with his usual routine. He dined with his mother and his family, then studied upstairs. Light kept planning his next move, but he kept the plans in his mind – the only place unsupervised by L. According to Ryuk, the detective had cameras covering every single inch of his house. He probably could see even what he was writing in his notebooks.

Kira remembered Caterina's warnings of playing his cards much more carefully – no matter how entertaining this cat and mouse game with L might be, he couldn't put his whole ideal at risk for this. Analyzing, Light was trying to find the weakest in Reiji's circle that would be corruptible or possible to threat into action. He was going to need at least two people helping him – one will ruin Reiji's home, while the other will ruin the Asian branch of Yotsuba. The sales had to drop dramatically, because Reiji was Vice President of sales… that should make him look like an incompetent, so his superiors will try to replace him.

With all of this in mind, he could barely find his sleep. Naturally, when he woke up, Light wasn't in the best of moods – he even forgot about the surveillance for a few minutes. He had to go to the bathroom, wash his face with cold water and yawn several times in order to be sufficiently awake to remember. Yet, being so careless and relaxed could prove to his advantage, making him look like any other normal teenager.

Light realized as he was getting dressed that the first class of the day was suspended – their teacher was out of town for three days. Frowning slightly, his left hand tapped his forehead as if to say, 'remember, you knew that from before'. With one hour at his disposal, he went downstairs for coffee and breakfast.

"Good morning, darling!" his mother greeted him. "Hurry up and eat something. You don't want to be late!"

"The teacher is out of town, mom. I forgot, so I woke up like usual," he smiled. "The first class is canceled." As his brain was taking its time waking up completely, he suddenly found himself in a bit of a tight situation. This one hour to himself could save him or damn him in the eyes of L and probably in those of his father, as well…

His mother saw him pouring himself some coffee. "Since when do you drink coffee?" She wasn't mad, but surprised to find out.

"I've… had a hard time falling asleep. I keep thinking about college, about the entrance exams, you know? I need a coffee, sometimes. I've started about… two months ago, I think. This semester, anyway." He sat down on his chair and rested one elbow on the table.

"Just please, don't drink too much of it. One is enough for a day." She had good reason to worry, because her husband often had more than three cups a day. "By the way, have you made up your mind? Are you going to the Academy?"

Light shook his head. "I'd rather study law, and I want to go to To-Oh. That's why I'm worried about the entrance exams…"

"There will be students from all over Asia! Maybe more!"

"Exactly. One in ten will be admitted, or less. But that's why it's the best university on the continent, right? They only admit the best of the best, and I want to be among them. If I can be at the top of the list, it's even better. The university offers one free entrance at a private gym weekly for the first semester to the first student admitted, and a scholarship. If I can keep myself at the top, I'll get these during the second semester as well, and in the following years."

The woman smiled with confidence. "I'm sure you will score the highest, again! You always had the best scores in school."

He chuckled. "Right… Well, you can't score over 100, and if there are several students with this score, they will use our graduation exams to decide the hierarchy. But those don't really worry me – these are designed for the average high school student, so everyone has a chance to pass. Just think of all those who graduate from high school and then go on to work immediately. Or maybe they qualify in something, take a six months course…"

"That's right. It's nearly impossible to find a job without high school… Then, I expect a perfect score for those!" She smiled brightly. "What do you want for breakfast?"

In the mean time, Sayu went to answer the door. It was the postman with a package for Light. "Hey, brother? The postman says you've got to sign! Light?!" she called.

"Coming." Light sat up and went to see what was it all about. He wasn't expecting anything, so what could it possibly be? An answer from Frost… maybe? "Yes?"

The postman and Sayu saw how confused he seemed. "Have you not ordered anything?"

Light felt what seemed to be a book in a thin cardboard envelope. "I've ordered a book, but that's been almost two months ago. What took you so long? I thought it got lost on the way."

"Hey, it's not my fault! It just got at the headquarters this morning!" the postman defended himself. "Light Yagami, right? Sign here, please. Have a good day!"

Sayu watched as the postman left. "…You ordered a book? About what?"

"That doesn't concern you," Light frowned towards her as he closed the door. "Go help mom to make breakfast or get ready for school. Shouldn't you be in a rush by now?"

"Nope. We've finished the text book with our headmaster and so, she said we're free to skip. She's going to be a grandma soon – her daughter is due at the end of the week! She's so happy! We told her to show us pictures when we meet again at the festivity at the end of the year." The girl clapped her hands in excitement. "I hope it's a baby girl! She can dress her up in ruffled skirts and pink Hi Kitty overalls and give her flower headbands and pretty ribbons!"

Light rolled his eyes with a smirk. "It's a baby, Sayu – not a present. And it's stupid to hope for a gender or another. Whatever the gender, it's a baby and the parents should be happy with it."

"Mom! Light says it's stupid to talk a baby's gender!" she called towards the kitchen.

He laughed and opened the package, on his way to his room. He didn't order anything, just like Ryuk pointed out, but he had to act like he did. He knew a website that deleted records after a month for every transaction, which also happened to be selling books. L had no way to check if Light really did order anything.

It was a science fiction novel – the first volume in a series of six, by a Russian author. He skimmed the description on the back, already certain that the book was a gift from Frost. It was about Earth, millions of years after a nuclear war, and in a terror-based post war political and ethical context. It definitely sounded interesting, so it won't be a pain to pretend reading it in the eyes of L. There was a good chance he will enjoy it.

After he left the book by his school bag, Light went to have breakfast with his sister and his mother. He was going to make his moves at school, and for that, he had a precise plan. First, he went at a public copy center and printed a list of criminals and murderers – those with major crimes, some in prison and many of them still free, wanted in several countries. He said he was studying criminal psychology and he needed those for a group project. Of course, Light wasn't their typical client.

Regardless, Light scheduled one page of the Death Note worth of criminals daily, for the following ten days. It will cover him up from the present, January 9th, to January 19th. By that time, L should end his surveillance. All he had to do now was to find a way to deal with Reiji…

"Hey, Light!" his colleague from before called from behind during a break. "What's up? Did you talk… you know?"

He sighed. "Not exactly, but she began to realize it won't work between us. She should accept you around any moment now."

"What did you say, then?" He looked truly worried. "You haven't… rejected her upfront, right?"

"More or less. Not upfront, no, but I told her I want to go to To-Oh, that I'll be very busy with school, that I want to be a judge which means many hours of work."

His colleague looked confused. "But then… are you planning on staying on your own? Forever? I mean, don't you want a woman?"

"If both are dedicated to hard work in a couple, they can understand each other. I can't have a girlfriend studying less and working less – she'd going to feel like I'm neglecting her. Not on purpose, you imagine, but…" Light sighed, "I want something else. At least for the next eight, maybe ten years. When I reach a certain level of stability, I can focus on family too, but not until then."

"Is that what you told her? Then I guess… I'll go try my luck again." He left with a smile. "Hey. Anything you need!" he gestured a phone call, to which Light nodded with a smile. He will ask for that favor back soon enough.

Ryuk was growing impatient. _'Why did you let him have Midori? I thought she was a great stress relief.'_

"Also quite stressful when she opens her mouth. Don't worry… He's got a debt to me that he will pay in a heartbeat, as soon as I ask for it." Kira sat on a bench in the school yard and unpacked his lunch box. His mother was always careful he won't forget his lunch, and he was grateful for that.

 _'What about that book? I don't remember you ordering anything last month, or the month before.'_

Light took it out of his school bag. "Thanks for reminding me. There must be a message somewhere…" He looked through the pages, but the book held nothing suspicious. When he slipped off the second cover, he found an envelope glued in between with a thin piece of scotch tape. "I'm starting to like this Ivan Frost."

 _'Why not between the pages? Would that be too obvious?'_

Light placed the envelope in the book. "See? It shows. You can't do this without damaging the book. He would have had to cut out the space through several pages, which is regarded as an act of vandalism among book lovers, just like folding corners or underlining phrases. He must be very fond of books… Either an avid reader, or a writer himself."

 _'This writer?!'_ the shinigami asked, surprised.

"Maybe. In truth, the political context of the Empire in this book is very similar to communism, with a few changes… Human rights are very limited and propaganda is everywhere. He could have written about a group of rebels trying to defeat the system and this would have been a killer psychological thriller, but instead, he follows a physicist transported through time during a failed experiment."

Ryuk looked over his shoulder at the book. _'Whatever. Just open the letter!'_

"Right." His eyes went at the bottom and he immediately saw it was signed by Frost again.

 _'Yagami the young, the situation is becoming more pressing for both of us now. The European branch is moving more aggressively towards the East, threatening the market of countries that had been part of the Soviet Union. These countries' market is mine alone, please understand._

 _I wish to know your plan and the resources you will need. Let me warn you – do not overprice anything. Your pay will be a separate transaction. You have time until the end of the week to comply.'_

"He will be pleased to know I've already got a plan…"

Ryuk's eyes widened even more. _'You do?!'_

Light began writing on the back of the letter. Frost seemed to be a fan of old-style hand-written letters, whether he was writing these himself or had somebody else writing them for him. It was easy to understand why, though – these were impossible to track. Phone calls could be recorded, while e-mail could be copied. But these? These were out of any kind of network, delivered by his men, and therefore impossible to track… Of course, if nobody betrayed Frost. But Light hoped that was not going to happen.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock** , as usual._

 _Thank you for your support, **HisRedRose123.** It made my day when I saw another review from you, and then your activity on Wattpad. I've also began posting this story on ArchiveOfOwrOwn or AO3, and I'll keep posting on these two websites until they catch up to FFN. Even so, updates will keep being published here first, and then copied on the other two websites in a matter of hours, maybe days. _


	46. XLV - Slavery

_XLV –Slavery_

* * *

A driver is a servant meant to drive their master from one place to another, faithfully wait for them to return and always at their disposal. A driver should only talk if the master is in the mood for conversation, or if asked something. A driver does not ask questions. A driver is, and always has been, nothing but a servant; and servants are meant to serve. Thinking, worrying, and speaking are to be done in their free time, if they have any.

Vitto had to learn that quickly. After only a few days, he didn't know who of the two was worse. Namikawa and Caterina were both taking advantage of him, humiliating him with every chance they got and enjoying it. They barely spoke anything meant for him to hear, which meant the Italian had to learn how to read their signs.

He had driven Namikawa to the Yotsuba headquarters about an hour ago, then took Caterina shopping. She was going to spend the money won from him – and on clothes, nonetheless! For years, Vitto avoided relationships because he hated the idea of wasting money on women's clothes. "She's gonna wear each once, or throw some away with the price tag still attached! I've seen this shit before… Fuck. I'll be here for ages," he mumbled to himself.

He took off, locked the car, and went to buy himself a cup of instant coffee from an automated machine. The day was horribly cold. He could feel his hands getting numb. Even so, he received orders to not keep the engine on. Vitto had to wait in the car and only turn on the heat ten minutes before Caterina was going to return.

His breath was almost freezing before fading away. Vitto was hoping it would begin to snow… It would have been a little less cold if it began to snow. Taking the plastic cup, he rushed back into the car. This was humiliating… Not even dogs were left waiting in the car!

But how many dogs did one carry in a car? Vitto saw three amstaff dogs taken by one man towards the back of the commercial center. Two others were going in. They were dressed in black, with hats shading their faces and tall collars. Vitto took his phone and called Namikawa. Perhaps this will earn him some gratitude.

"It is urgent, sir," he said as soon as the other picked up the phone. "Trust me. There is a black SUV two rows in front of me. There are three suspicious men here with dangerous dogs. One seems to be waiting for something or someone in the back with the dogs while two others went in. I ask your permission to go inside and make sure Caterina is safe."

Namikawa listened. _'Did you see their faces?'_

"No, sir. They covered their faces." Vitto was already annoyed. He could feel a negative answer on its way. Namikawa didn't seem worried at all.

 _'Take the car close to the southern gate and wait.'_

As soon as he hung up, Namikawa called Caterina and warned her about the situation. She rushed towards the southern exit, where Vitto was already waiting. He had to take off and open the door for her since there were bags hanging from both of her arms. "Hurry up, will you?"

Vitto threw her a dirty look, slamming the door shut as soon as she got in. Mumbling insults, he walked around the front of the car and sat in the driver's seat.

"Drive already!" Caterina yelled. Her followers were walking out of the building as well and her greatest fear was for them to be armed. "Go!"

Vitto started the engine and left in a rush, taking the turns so suddenly, Caterina and her bags tossed from one side to the other. If obedience won't attract the respect of his masters, then perhaps this will.

Caterina managed to put her seat belt on. Luckily, the car's inside was as clean as Namikawa's house, so she didn't have to worry about her things scattering around. In a very soft tone, quietly demanding that the man would turn his attention on her, she sighed. "Are you feeling sick, Vitto?"

Confused, the man shook his head. "…No, I-!"

"Are you sure? Are you aware of who you are?" she continued.

"Uh… yeah?" the driver answered.

"Do you remember your situation? Are you certain there's no need for someone to remind you how Ross would crush your legs and cut you open like a pig, hang you upside-down and watch you choke on your own blood as he's smoking a cigar and reminds you of how you betrayed him?"

Vitto saw her watching him with that look of superiority, with the venom of a reptile on her tongue and the flames of anger in her eyes. "…Yes, miss."

"So, you say that you do remember…" She leaned with her elbows over the shoulders of the passenger's seat. "I am positive Ross would be willing to make a deal, if I were to offer him a traitor. Padre said the worst punishment is reserved not for the murderers or the thieves, but for traitors."

Vitto felt his blood boiling. He was certain now that he hated Caterina more than he had ever hated anyone. "My so-called betrayal is the reason he's not raping you right now!"

"Is it, I wonder…? Are you positive it has nothing to do with your greed?"

The man gritted his teeth. The tone of her voice made him despise her more every second, so calm and soft, in complete control, mocking him constantly. Vitto breathed deeply several times in order to calm down. They were crossing a bridge and it made him think about making an escape. Sadly, Vitto couldn't swim… That thought slapped the previous out of his mind. He wasn't desperate enough to kill himself trying to kill Caterina.

The young woman was leaning in her seat now. When they reached a certain crossroad, she signaled Vitto to turn right. Caterina was hoping she would find Misa at the same address. "Stop behind that blue car and wait." She took off as soon as Vitto stopped the car and went to check the names list at the entrance.

As soon as she heard the intercom ringing, Misa went to answer. "Is it you, Mr. postman?"

 _'Even better. Open up, Lolita – I've got some news. You're going to love it!'_ a familiar voice answered her. The blonde tilted her head.

"Who is it from? Misa doesn't know you!"

 _'Come on, baby doll. I ain't got the time for a tea party like Anastasia used to arrange.'_

Misa unlocked the front door and let Caterina into the building, then rushed to put on a pair of shorts. It was rude to greet people in your underwear – even she knew that. There wasn't that much of a length difference between her shorts and her underwear, but they were labeled as half a point more decent.

Caterina took the elevator. It only took her a minute to reach the blonde's door. "Hello. I'm sorry it's been such a long time."

Naturally, Misa jumped and hugged her briefly. "I've missed you! Sour as a lemon, but you're so kind inside!"

Smirking, the Italian hushed her and pushed her back inside, closing the door. "Don't let anybody hear that. I've got an appearance to keep, as annoying as it may be."

"How have you been? And where! Oh, tell Misa everything – _every last little thing, every single tiny microscopic little thing~_ " she began singing. "Do you know the film? It's so romantic and tragic, I know it by heart – the songs too! So, do you have someone? Are you better than the last time? Say something!" Misa chuckled as she paused a dark animated film on her TV.

Caterina laughed a bit and left her boots by the door. Her day has been nothing but usual – her boyfriend was at work, her driver probably hates her more than the previous day, and she nearly got murdered. Possibly, but still – it made her feel luckier for getting away. She'd have to deal with that later, though.

"Yes, I do have someone, and I'm much better than last time. By the way, doll, I owe you for that night when you let me stay over."

Misa waved her hand. "Don't worry! You saved Misa from the burglar and that's fantastic! It's like in the movies, except we didn't make out after that." She cringed. "My, Misa would never do that with a girl!"

"Regardless, I'm here to offer you a contract. How is your modeling career, by the way? Anastasia would have wanted me to ask." The thought of her mother brought a small smile in the corner of her mouth and tears in the corners of Misa's eyes.

"I miss her so much! Misa loved her, even if you didn't!" When she saw Caterina frowning slightly, she remembered the real topic. "I've posed for several magazines, but it's only short time jobs, you know? Misa gives an interview, poses for a few hours, and that's it."

Caterina nodded. "I see. Well, I'm offering you a contract for a month – for now. If all goes well, it can be prolonged. That means you could get a contract without a time limit," she explained once she saw Misa's confused look. "You will be filming a few commercials for different brands part of the Yotsuba group, pose for weekly magazines and advertisement posters, banners and so on. What do you say?"

"…Misa doesn't have to pose naked for that, right? Misa doesn't do nudes."

"Heavens, no!" the Italian laughed. "You will be dressed by the sponsors – different blouses and shirts, skirts, pantaloons, dresses…"

Misa squealed with joy. "I'd LOVE that! L-O-V-E it! Sounds fantastic! I can't wait to get started! When does Misa sign?"

"We'll keep in touch," Caterina assured her.

"OH! Speaking of heavens and gods, have you heard of Kira? He's SO cool!"

Once she saw an occasion, Caterina mocked her again. "How do you know Kira is male? Maybe it's a she."

"What?! No way!" the blonde freaked out. "He can't be! Kira's going to be a god, not a goddess!"

"There were many cases of women posing as men until they get the throne. Kira is a neutral name, you realize – neither male, nor female."

Misa pouted. "I don't believe you! On the internet, it says Kira is a man!"

"The internet says many things," she decided to end the argument there. "Give me your number and I'll call you about that contract."

"Right!" Misa ripped off a page from her diary – a wash-out pink with neon pink hearts and black and gray skulls on the top – then she wrote her phone number with a glittery purple gel pen. She wrote her name as well. "Here!"

Caterina found every detail about that page absolutely disgusting. All, except for the scent. "Is it… grapes?"

Misa nodded. "Misa's second favorite. The first favorite Misa absolutely adores is red and smells like strawberries!"

With a small smile, she folded the paper in four and slipped it into the back pocket of her jeans. "Thank you. And please – be careful with your praise for Kira. Some might not encourage it."

"Why not?!" she whined. "Kira is a hero!"

"Well, some might regard him with some hostility – not necessarily reject Kira, but… You know how Padre was – he rarely trusted a person hiding their face and identity. There are many people who think the same. You shouldn't state your love for such an unpredictable character in front of others. You never know how they might interpret this."

"But… Kira doesn't hurt innocents, right? There's no reason to be afraid!"

Caterina tried to hold back a laugh. Misa was so dense sometimes… "I'm not talking about fear here. Many are waiting to see if Kira can be trusted or not – they don't have enough information on Kira. That's all there is." In truth, many were against him, and even more were afraid for themselves or for those close to them. "Just remember – avoid talking about Kira at your workplace, alright? Don't talk about it at all."

The blonde nodded. "…Sure, Misa can do that."

"Wonderful. Now please, excuse me. I've only stopped by to ask about the contract. Take care!" Caterina walked towards the door. "Wait for me to call you."

"Misa will! Bye-bye!" she giggled, closing the door behind the Italian. For a moment, a thought crossed her mind and intrigued her – Misa was older than Caterina, enough so she could be called a woman, while Caterina wasn't even old enough to open her own bank account. Even so, the other looked much more mature than Misa… She couldn't decide if it was tragic or beautiful, but if it seemed so interesting to her, it was probably both. Smiling brightly, she turned off the lights in her house and continued watching the animation film.

In the movie, the main character was to finally get married to the dead bride, when the bride's evil ex crashed the party. Misa knew the next scene was going to be the duel between the good groom-to-be and the bride's ex fiancé – and also her killer. It was one of her favorite scenes, making her hold her breath every single time.

Vitto drove Caterina back home. He led her inside, already aware his punishment for earlier will be to gather everything from the car, place it back into the paper bags, and carry those into the girl's room. The man couldn't understand why Caterina got her own room,when Namikawa was treating her pretty much like his wife. He didn't associate the word 'lover' to a lifetime partner – Vitto would rather think of a temporary companion, someone to help the time pass and brighten up the mood for a night, a week, or a month.

Obviously, in Vitto's understanding, Namikawa shouldn't be discussing business and important decisions with the 'lover'. However, despite all this, he did – Caterina heard everything from him. That meant their relationship was on a higher level, so… why would they sleep in separate rooms?

What he didn't know was that the masters of the house were asking themselves the same question, each waiting for the other to hint towards a natural change or to ask openly for it.

After the driver was done carrying Caterina's bags, he parked the car in the garage and returned into the living room. He was waiting for Namikawa to ask him to go pick him up from the corporation's headquarters, but when his phone rang, he was very surprised to hear a different voice.

 _'Unless you want Ross to find out about your little hideout, you will listen to my instructions precisely.'_ Vitto froze – pale as a real vampire and stiff as a corpse, he clenched his fist around the phone.

Kitamura's assistant was smoking a cigarette, playing with it between her long, thin fingers. "Do you hear me?" She leaned against the wall. The woman was standing on a balcony, respecting Kitamura's new order of smoking only outside the house.

 _'Yes…!'_

"Good. Have you heard the name ' _Yagami_ ' before?" she continued. The assistant was gorgeous, as Itachi noticed every time he looked at her. She had a pair of incredibly long legs, of perfect shape, and straighter than the blade of a sword, tensed up by a different pair of stilettos every day. Whatever she might wear, Kitamura's eyes always found the roundness of her ass mesmerizing.

The assistant knew he analyzed her every day for the past three years. She had refined her appearance and her gestures from a young age, hoping her early developed body and her symmetrical, harmonious face would help her out of poverty. She wasn't wrong. "Mr. Kitamura would like you to send a threat message to the Yagami family. You can leave it anonymous, or sign it yourself. What you must write is that Detective L should give up supervising anyone bearing the name of Kitamura. Do you understand?"

Her employer was pleased. A widower for the past four years, as soon as he was done mourning, Itachi hired himself a personal assistant. The girl was just eighteen years old then, but she was dedicated and hard-working with the finesse of a geisha, the body of a goddess, and the will of a warrior. "What did he say?" he asked from an armchair, back in the room.

"He is afraid of exposing himself in front of L during the Kira investigation, sir."

The man nodded slowly, a gesture that could be translated as _'Ah, I see…'_. "Ask him to leave it anonymous. It shouldn't be so difficult to do that."

The woman told Vitto the instructions. He was to leave the threat in the post of the Yagami house, then call back and confirm the delivery by tomorrow morning. "Make sure you won't be late." She hung up before the driver could ask anything else.

His situation had her thinking… In less than a week, Vittorio became someone's servant. How awfully dramatic – and how ironic! She sighed. "Poor soul… He did everything he could to become a master, then fell and became a servant again. Do you believe in destiny, sir?"

Kitamura remembered how he began working for Ross years ago, trafficking young women and drugs. He did everything in his power to climb up to a comfortable level on the social ladder and also into the business world. "No… What I do believe is that every man crafts their own destiny. It would have been even more ironic if Vitto went back to serving food and drinks and washing dishes for hours on end, if you ask me. He's lucky he could find himself the job of a driver; it's rather clean work."

Kana nodded. Even so, she couldn't help but feel disappointed by Vittorio. Secretly, she had been thinking to leave Kitamura and contact Vitto. It would have been easy to make him fall in love over his head. Vitto had been richer than Kitamura until not too long ago, and he was also younger… But after his terrible fall, Kana was glad she didn't make the move.

On the next morning, Light was the first to check the mail. It has become a habit since Ivan Frost had first contacted him. However, today it was his turn to reach out to Frost – there was a threatening message among the water and electricity bills, one that was meant to catch his father's attention and reach L through him. Light slipped it into an inner pocket of his coat along with his keys, so L won't suspect anything.

As usual, Kira went to school, and then rushed to the missing board bench where he had been leaving messages for Frost before. He sat down and waited.

 _'Are you sure about this?'_ Ryuk asked.

Kira was throwing quick, subtle glances behind each shoulder and to the side, checking out every place from where he could be seen. He also made sure to hold the folded paper in one hand, in such a way it would be visible from all around.

"What choice do I have? This is getting serious…" he mumbled in response.

 _'There is someone leaving the park there on the side alley to your far right. They've been watching you…'_

"Man or woman?" Kira asked. "It's the least you could tell me."

 _'…Woman,'_ the shinigami laughed. That surprised Light. _'She's making a call. There's also a man on the bench in front of you, behind that tree.'_

Light thought it clever. The bench he had to take was the only one from which he couldn't see the man if he sat there while he could see Light with the help of any glossy surface. The man had a glass bottle in his left hand filled with coke. "The same effect as a dark window…" Light mumbled to himself.

 _'What was that?'_ Ryuk didn't understand.

Light sat up and sighed. With a relaxed pace, he began approaching the stranger sitting in that strategic angle. "Excuse me, sir… I'd like to have a word with my new… employer, so to say." He then continued walking as it nothing happened. Light knew there was no chance for him to see Frost for now – the man probably didn't trust him, but that didn't exclude the possibility of a phone call. Or just another letter… That would have taken them longer, though.

But Light was in luck. He didn't even have the time to leave the park when his phone rang. "Good morning, sir. If I am correct, it should still be morning in Moscow."

 _'Good afternoon. What is the emergency? I believe it is a pressuring matter that pushed you to ask for this conversation…'_ a robotic voice asked. It made Kira smirk. The man was very, very careful.

"Of life and death, to be precise. It also happens to involve a certain detective, and a very dangerous investigation going on."

A few moments of silence went by the two of them, as each waited for the other to continue. 'Details,' the Russian sighed.

"It is quite complicated to talk over the phone. Tomorrow, from 11 am. to 2 pm. I have some cancelled classes and unimportant consultations. My level is above the average, so I am willing to skip. I wish to meet with you, sir, or if that is too much trouble, with someone who you trust to understand the message and report it completely and accurately. It would be in our best interest if the conversation won't be transmitted in real time, or recorded."

Ryuk leaned closer to Light's phone. _'How brave of you! Or should I say reckless?'_

 _'You'll better be worth my time, Yagami…'_

"I believe I will, sir. With all my respect, it is getting in the way of my plan with all the death threats and police investigations…"

The Russian began taking him seriously. _'12 pm. A driver will pick you up from your school.'_

"Actually, I think that might be a little too unusual. It's going to draw some attention, which neither of us needs. Rather, I will send you a precise meeting point on this number. Can't hurt to be overly precautious, right?" the teenager laughed right before the Russian ended the call.

In less than a minute, Light already sent the location to Frost. It was a crossroad between a tight one-way street and an alleyway, quite far from his school. It made Ryuk wonder about his choice. "I can leave as soon as the clock strikes 11:00. I will need to take bus number 8 and get off at the second stop, then walk through the quarter. It is far enough from any road that my father frequents, away from Sayu's friends and favorite meeting places, and it offers me plenty of options in case anything goes wrong."

 _'What, are you just going to run through the streets?'_ the shinigami wondered.

"Not any streets. You'll see – tight, twisted, with countless crossroads. I can lose my track very fast. Then, the specific place I chose for this meeting has another advantage. There is a small universal store on the other side of the road, on the corner, which offers me a good view of every direction from which they could come. Also, because it's a stuffy place, they won't realize where I am until I step out."

 _'Oh,'_ it chuckled, bearing its uneven teeth, _'You seem to know that quarter very well.'_

"Not just that – I know every single corner of this town. I did grow up here, after all…" Kira grinned. He had to wait at a traffic light in order to cross the road, so he slipped the threat into the Death Note. "And once I find out who did this…" His grin spread over his face like the darkness in which the city was slowly sinking.

In the mean time, the guilty went to pick up his master from the corporation's headquarters. His eyes were still gleaming with hatred, no matter how much he tried to hide it, so as soon as Reiji was in the car, he let it burst. Vitto began driving in the wrong direction, quickly leaving Tokyo behind. "Don't worry, we're just taking a shortcut…" he tried to say through his teeth.

Reiji's calm was beyond irritating. The Italian found it another show of pride, another way to humiliate him, so he began taking tighter curves. He was speeding up the highway, gritting his teeth and clutching his fists around the wheel. "Say something, goddamn it! SAY SOMETHING!"

Even so, Namikawa only sighed at first. It took him another few seconds to answer, but for Vitto, they seemed years of silence. "What do you expect to gain out of this?"

Vitto pulled the car off the highway and onto a secondary road. "Me?! ME?! What do YOU get out of this?! What do you and that fucking child get out of torturing me like this?! You make me carry your bags, I have to wait in the car with the motherfucking heat off! With the engine off! No heat, no radio, no nothing! What the bloody hell do you think I am? A fucking slave? What do you two assholes get out of this?! You treat me like garbage! Worse than dog shit – you step all over me! My dignity? My condition as a human? It's all gone! Are you the devil's servants, or what? I haven't had one fucking day off in over a week! If the princess wants something at 3 in the morning, I have to be ready – well, excuse my pathetic ass, how the hell should I know?!"

The Italian stopped the car on a road cutting fields in half, in the middle of nowhere. He pulled out a gun and turned to face Reiji, his eyes red and glossy and his veins pulsing on his neck. "SAY SOMETHING!"

Even so, Namikawa simply shrugged as a tiny smile was tucking at the corner of his mouth. "I believe that is the description of a life in servitude, yes. Now, what seems to be the problem?"

Pissed off, Vitto loaded the gun. "I'M NOT FUCKING AROUND! I asked for your respect! I was alright working without a salary, I was fine being a driver – should be easy, right? Turns out it's not! Not for fucking royalty!" He tried to shoot, only to break the back window.

Namikawa held his wrist in his hands, with the same small, mocking smile on his face and the same frustratingly calm expression. "Sadly, Vittorio, you must have forgotten your nature. You are nothing but a pawn, and a pawn never moves backwards into safety. Pawns only move forward – either to attack, to intimidate, to distract the opponent, or to be sacrificed for their king's sake. Or for the sake of a queen, of a madman, of a tower, or even another pawn. You may feel glorious stepping forward, but your nature remains the same."

"…Devil," Vitto spit into his face, which eventually angered Namikawa. "You're the fucking DEVIL!"

Reiji forced the gun out of his hand, then began to unbutton his sleeves. He threw his coat off on the back seat, then stepped off and pulled Vitto along. "That was a formidable mistake that you've just made…"

Waiting for Reiji to return and already worried because of how late he was, Caterina called him a few times, but he did not pick up. After almost an hour, he called her back and the way her blood began rushing through her veins and the slight tremor of her hands surprised her. "Are you alright?" she asked, before even hearing his voice first.

 _'Yes, I am quite alright… aside from a couple bruises. Sadly, my suit is ruined, but I'm doing alright.'_ There was also some kind of noise in the background.

"Well, where are you? Why aren't you home? It's Vitto, isn't it? He did something stupid, as usual…" Caterina had ordered a meal from a fancy restaurant, but it had gotten cold. She was on one of his couches, on the one where he set her down when she felt sick from finding out about Vitto's drinking habits. "What's with that noise?"

 _'I will be home in a little bit. Don't worry, everything is under control. I stopped to wash the car after a little… accident. But don't worry, everything is fine.'_

She frowned. An accident? "Did Vitto hit a stray dog? If you say it's fine, then it couldn't have been a person… right?"

 _'Actually, I am the one who drove over him…'_

"Over a dog?" For once, she couldn't follow.

 _'Over Vittorio, my darling. He's still alive, but he can no longer walk, or drive, for that matter. I am going to call Ross for negotiations – I'm shipping him to the United States, so I was wondering if you can contact the King to make sure everything follows through on the other shore of the ocean. Sweetheart? Are you still there?'_

Caterina still couldn't believe what she had just heard. "Wait, y-you did… what?! But why? He's reckless, alright, but to turn him over to Ross? That's just cruel."

 _'I've… Well, I might have lost my temper and a few fists for a couple of minutes. More like an hour, but what matters now is that he is alive, which means we can still make Ross pay generously for him.'_

The girl was shocked. She could hear the noise fading as, she assumed, the car had been washed and dried, then polished… "Namikawa, you're putting him in hell, or worse. He won't just die, he'll be tortured for weeks or months before Ross gets bored of him."

 _'I know. But we can ask Ross to end his obsession with you. Earlier today, you could have been in trouble – there's no one else who could have been behind that incident. Please understand, I'm doing this for you. I'm sure your father would have done the same-!'_

But before he could finish, she snapped. "Padre would have captured Ross and tortured him instead. He would have killed Vitto quickly because he's a pain to keep alive, but that would've been all! …Namikawa, I'm sorry, but I can't agree to that. Please, just come home. Kill Vitto, if you want, then dump his body somewhere, but don't contact Ross. He doesn't have to know. If Ross finds out you already damaged Vitto to such a degree, he will take it as an insult."

Namikawa nodded, slowly returning to his usual state of mind. His hands were bruised and his knuckles skinned by Vittorio's teeth. He took a couple of deep breaths, as the prisoner was still terrified in the trunk of the car. "Alright, my dear, but I'd rather let someone else deal with these kinds of details."

 _'Kill him. End his suffering. Then return home, darling – we'll figure out the details after we eat. I'm going to reheat the food.'_

The man nodded. In truth, now that the anger was no longer clouding his mind, Namikawa was realizing that he had put himself into a completely new situation. He didn't assist his father at similar times and he was hesitant when it came to actually taking someone's life. He wouldn't have bat an eye sending Vitto to a passionate sadist, but his hands were sweating and his spine was freezing just from the thought of taking a life – even if that life happened to be of a vermin.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock,** like always. _

_I've been thinking lately that I have many original characters and that maybe some of you could become... confused. Or just have a difficult time getting a clear image in their mind through the series. And so, I could post some character sheets soon enough. If you'd like that, of course._


	47. XLVI - Freezing

_XLVI –Freezing_

* * *

The sky was the color of mercury as a few tiny, shy snowflakes were floating down over the gray capital. From behind the shelves stuffed with magazines, a few cheap books and paper towels, the two could see the same white car that first delivered Light's food order, along with the letter from Ross. Kira recognized the plate number. He called Frost immediately. "What is the plate number of the car in which I am supposed to go?" he asked, sounding as innocent as possible.

As Frost was dictating the number, Light compared it with that of the car parked on the other side of the road. 'Now leave the universal store and stop joking around,' the Russian finished.

Ryuk was more surprised than Light. "In a moment. Thank you."

 _'How could he know? Surveillance cameras?'_ Ryuk was already looking around for cameras.

Light shook his head. "Plain logic, I'm afraid. It was obvious I was here from the moment I asked for the plate number confirmation." He walked out, crossing the street and getting into the car. There were two others there, plus the driver. "Hello." Of course, his smile was ignored.

Frost was waiting for Yagami at the entrance into a forest, right by a secondary road that was rarely frequented. On the other side of the road, the fields were frozen under a thick layer of ice and snow. He was a tall man with pale skin and his lips turning a bit purple from the cold. One of his eyebrows and part of his cheek had been scarred by a burning, Light assumed this because the skin regenerated badly. He wore dark sunglasses, making Light wonder if he was blind in one eye or if it was just a fashion accessory. He wore a fur hat that Light found to be quite disgusting. It was like wearing a corpse on his head, but on a second thought, it did fit the Russian's image…

"It is a pleasure to meet you," he began, as Ryuk was already floating around Frost and his men, analyzing them.

"Hurry up and speak," came the order, to which Light nodded.

"Of course. Well, I believe you already know about the Kira case – the investigation brought detective L to Japan. Turns out, there had been some information leaked from someone working with L, information related to the case, and that some FBI agents were killed immediately after. Long story short, L keeps my family and another one under surveillance right now, both video and audio. I would know, because my dad told me – he shouldn't have, but he let me know because he's not usually home, so it's fallen on me to take care of my family."

The Russian didn't look impressed. Even so, he took the paper from Light's hand and skimmed it. He passed it to one of his men. "Consider the problem solved. Anything else keeping you from doing your job?"

"Yes, two tiny details… Or just one, on second thought. I've tried to contact Reiji's driver. He hates both Reiji and Caterina, so I figured I could ruin his family life through him – if you can call a man in his 30's sleeping around with underage girls a family, that is." With that, Light hoped to win the other one's sympathy. Like the Dragon, Frost was known to have some very strict ethical rules, most of them revolving around family. "The problem is that he is not picking up. It's been over 24 hours already, but I didn't go to the police yet. I'm thinking that Reiji could be framed for murder."

"What do you need for that?" Frost immediately realized how such a stain was going to ruin Reiji's career as well. It was a long shot, but they could ruin him with one blow.

"I've been assisting crime scene investigations, so I think I can manage… I want to know if we can find out his location through the GPS in the past few hours. It could lead us to a body. After that, someone will just ' _accidentally_ ' stumble across it, call the emergency number, and the police will do the rest. We can speed up the investigation by sending in anonymous clues – even if they say they don't bother with those, the police are obligated to check any clue that could possibly lead to a killer." Light began rubbing his hands together. Even in his pockets, his hands were freezing.

The original plan was a little bit more complicated. Light wanted to use two people at once – the driver and the secretary. While the first was going to wreck Reiji's home and disturb his balance as a human being, the latter was going to fall for his charms and leak compromising information that would have found its way to the rivals of Yotsuba in no time. However, Frost liked this new plan way better. "…He could even get killed by Kira," he smirked.

"It's a possibility, yes," Light agreed just to pass the moment. He wasn't going to end Reiji's life – he'd much rather have him beaten to a pulp and raped every day, rotting in some filthy jail.

Frost nodded in agreement. "Tell me at which hour you want to know Reiji's location."

"It would be better if I had a continuous report of his activity in the past 24 hours. I went out to buy some rice for my mom about a quarter after eight, so being out of the controlled environment of my house, I tried to contact the driver, Vittorio. He didn't pick up. If it's some unusual location, we might need to know Reiji's location a few hours earlier."

"So, given the fact that L is supervising your house, you need to return as you would normally do if you had been at school…" There was amusement and a hint of irony in that remark, but Light had no right to point it out. "Does he track your email as well?"

"Not that I'm aware of." Kira could no longer feel his feet. His shoes were not meant to be worn for half an hour, submerged into snow to his ankles and without any movement capable of producing more body heat.

Suddenly, they were both surprised to hear Light's phone ringing. The teenager looked at Frost and his men surrounding them, waiting for instructions. "It's dad." At that time, he should be on break at school. "I have to answer." He took a few steps away. "Did anything happen, father?"

There was a faint buzzing noise in the background, something Light couldn't explain. _'Nothing. I'm on a break and I thought we could talk. How are you?'_

"Thanks goodness. I've been worried, dad. You don't answer your phone, you rarely come home anymore… What's the deal with that L? You have the right to taking time off. You know that better than me."

Light found it even stranger that his father's response was delayed. _'I know, son, but it's for our own safety. Are you at school?'_

One of the people working for the Russian went to inform him something. Frost frowned. "I'm… with a friend. Why do you ask? I hope nothing happened at school."

 _'There was a fire alarm. I don't know the details yet. Listen, Light, go home as soon as possible. Your mother is worried about you. I'll try to make it to dinner tonight.'_

Light nodded. "Alright. Take care, dad." When he hung up, Frost was glaring at him.

"Someone tried to track your phone signal," he clarified.

"Do you know who?"

Ryuk was amused by the sudden tension in the air. _'This is getting good…!'_

The one who informed Frost earlier stepped forward. "The signal we tracked back comes from somewhere in the business center, possibly a private network set up in a hotel."

"That's L," Light immediately said. "I need to return home. I don't need him suspecting me of anything. So, then, do you think you can manage? It's very simple. Once you follow Reiji's car or his phone in the past 24 hours, you can then have someone stumbling over the body and then the police will take care of the rest. Reiji will be accused of murder because it's his driver that will be found dead, and from my knowledge, he might have even worked without a contract. That kind of work is illegal, and will stain his reputation further."

Frost stared at him coldly. "If this second plan of yours is successful, you will receive the pay in your bank account. If not…"

"It has to be. I'm not worried. I know the system from the inside, remember." Light smiled and went towards the white car. "I would appreciate it if someone could drive me back into the city."

At the same time, Caterina and Namikawa were stepping out of the car. They had driven to a bridge that has been closed for several years. It was in a state of ruin, barely spreading over the river underneath. The water was full of trash and the bodies of those who committed suicide there, so nobody should find their car.

Caterina stared for a few seconds longer after the car with a missing back window. "Are you sure he's dead?" She could see air escaping from the car.

"Certain," Namikawa stated. "I suffocated him, I told you. I tied a plastic bag over his head. He must have died in a few minutes, at most."

The girl nodded, following him. They had a really long walk to the closest train station. "I know… I just hope you're right. Anyway, if he hasn't died by now, he's going to drown." She sighed. "The first kill is always difficult. I still have nightmares from time to time… I doubt I will ever forget Bianca's face when she realized I was faking when she felt the cable wrapping around her neck. You know, sometimes I wonder if she would have changed her ways if she had come alive out of that house…"

Her partner remained silent for a long time. "…Didn't you say she was a murderer?"

"Yes. She killed Diego, and there's a chance she would have killed me. But… That doesn't change the guilt, you know? Vitto killed many more - innocent people, too - but you're still ravished," she said with a small, bitter smile. "What I'm saying is that… guilt is normal. It's part of the kill, it's the only thing left, the only thing you can't throw away or wash off. It just proves that you're a good man."

Reiji stopped, shocked. "Me?! A good man? …Caterina, I've killed someone with my own two hands. I'm a murderer! There's nothing left in me that's good."

Turning to look back at him, she shook her head. "You're still a good man. People like Vittorio or Ross don't feel guilty for the lives they take. On the contrary – they're proud of it, they're happy and they brag about it." Walking towards him, she set her warm hands over his cold cheeks. "Do I look like a murderer to you?"

The man wrapped his hands around her. "You don't, but that doesn't change what we've done."

"I know," she sighed. "We're both damned now. Sometimes I think Padre did all the charity to try and persuade God and the Devil that he's not such a monster as his enemies saw him. Maybe we should, too… You know, raise funds for the orphans, offer them an education, well-paid jobs, low rent apartments… Pay the treatment of the ill. In any religion, they encourage you to regret your wrongs and to do more right, because everyone is capable of evil. It's easier than to do something good."

The man wanted to cry, but he was too angry with himself to let a tear fall. He felt the weight of his deeds burying him alive into a coffin of guilt. "Perhaps we should," he mumbled. "If only to ease our own consciousness."

"Right. Let's go home, you'll learn how to deal with it. The feeling kills you now, but tomorrow it will be a little better." Caterina took his hand out of her own initiative for the first time in a while.

For the rest of the day, they kept comforting each other, just like the Kitamura brothers. One of them was a widower, while the other was in the middle of a divorce. The latter had brought his daughter with him.

"How is Amai doing?" her uncle asked.

The father sighed. "I'm afraid all this surveillance and the divorce from her mother is stressing her out. Her diabetes is harder to keep under control… Her thighs are full of needle stings and her arms too. If she's not very careful, the bruises take weeks to heal. It's… I try not to let it show, but it's breaking my heart to see my only daughter like this."

Itachi looked towards the other room, where Kana was keeping Amai company. "I love her as my own, you already know… I've made pressures so that this L detective will stop stressing out your daughter. It's the last thing she needs now."

"Thank you. I thought I could arrange for an interview with him or a representative, but he doesn't even reply to my requests. At the same time, I didn't receive any reports on their progress with the investigation. I don't know why my family is being supervised or if they have any suspects. Clearly, I know I'm not Kira and Amai would never think of that."

"Koreyoshi, the Yagami family is in the same situation. L is looking for two things, I believe – some way through which Kira could have found out about the twelve FBI agents and a suspect." The man stood up. "Do you want to go out? I could use a smoke," he asked, nodding towards the door to the balcony. Amai was the reason the man forbid smoking inside the apartment.

The father nodded and followed his elder brother. There was only a one year difference between them, so they've always been close. "Do you think Kira could be related to Soichiro?"

"It's only an assumption, but L surely has a reason for keeping the Yagamis under observation, right? I'm thinking the son is most likely L's bet. If you do a little research, you'll see that the boy is brilliant. He scores perfectly on every exam and the only thing the teachers could complain about is how he gets bored in class all the time."

Koreyoshi leaned against the railway, taking a moment to think. "Yes… Soichiro used to talk about him all the time. He wants to enroll his son into the police academy, so he probably raised him in a very strict environment."

"Strict, indeed, and cultivating his sense for justice," Itachi added. "Also, if his father is so proud of him and his teachers spoil him, there's a good chance the kid is prideful and stubborn, overconfident. Wouldn't you agree?"

His brother nodded. "Yes… Sounds right. But for him to be Kira? I think it's a bit too much." Sighing, he crossed his hands over his chest. He wasn't a smoker, even if his brother was. "Regardless, it's already January 12th and I want L to end the surveillance of my house. I don't care if he keeps Yagami under observation, but my daughter is very stressed because of it. She found two cameras yesterday and has been searching for them constantly for three days now. The day before, she found one in the bathroom – can you imagine?"

"I tried everything, from my lawyer threatening to sue L to a threatening message addressed to the Yagami family. This L… he either didn't receive anything or ignored both of us." Itachi didn't even notice when his cigarette had burned. He felt a hot pain on his finger and quickly put it out into an ash tray then lit himself another. "He will stop, eventually. Though if you've changed your mind and want to sue him, my lawyer won't ask for money this time. It's his personal ambition to defeat L in court."

"…I think I might, actually. What did you say was his name?"

"Satori Yukimura. I'll write down his phone number. He already knows about your situation and said he's going to use a medical exam of your daughter to prove that L's means had endangered her life. He won't just sue him for breaking the law and invading your privacy, but also for damaging her health. He says your chances of a win are over 80%. If you say she's found some cameras, then it should be even better." Itachi left his cigarette on the ash tray and went inside for a piece of paper and a pen. He wrote the lawyer's name and phone number then handed it to Koreyoshi.

He took it and smiled. "Thank you, brother. I appreciate it."

When he got home, his mother welcomed him with open arms. "Light! Oh, thanks goodness you're alright! There was a fire at your school!"

He hugged her for a moment then gently pushed his mother away. "Yes, mom, I know. Father called and told me. I found out this morning a few classes were canceled, so I went with a classmate for a walk and sat down for a drink. I should have told you. I'm sorry."

"It doesn't matter now. All I care about is you! You're fine, that's all that counts!" She hugged him again before letting him enter the house.

Light was glad to be home. He left his shoes by the door and felt his cheeks and his fingers burning and tingling. The strangest thought ran through his mind and for a moment, Kira wondered if the victims dying of frostbite felt the same way… Those saved at the last moment usually said something about feeling warm towards the end. He remembered Caterina when she presented her father's most dangerous rivals – Vitto who left his victims drained of blood, Ross who preferred the unimaginative bullet to the head, and Frost who let tortured victims freeze to death.

He rubbed his feet, trying to make the blood flow normally. Was it a warning that Frost chose that particular setting for a meeting? It looked like a place to hide a body… The late realization sent a cold chill down his spine.

"Light? Are you alright?" His mother set a hot hand over his forehead. "Go upstairs and change. I'll make you some tea, alright? Where have you been?"

"I've walked a lot, mom. I guess I didn't really feel the cold." He smiled a little before climbing up the stairs. His body felt heavy and a little numb, his head began to ache. When he took his pants off, he realized the fabric was wet up to his knees and frozen for the most part. There was snow still refusing to melt around the bottom edge of the fabric.

 _'Are you alright?'_ Ryuk asked.

"…No. I hope I'm not catching a cold. I've still got to study," he mumbled, before reminding himself L was still watching – probably. He sighed and hung his pants to dry on the chair at his desk then changed into a pair of warmer training pants. His socks were frozen as well and he was aware he had every chance in the world to go down with an ugly cold tonight. But that wasn't part of the plan…

Light took some books and his notes, stacked them on the unused side of his bed, then placed the pillows so he could sit comfortably and keep warm. The entrance exams were close and it was about time he'd stop neglecting those.

His mother knocked before coming in with the tea and leaving it on the nightstand. "Are you sure you're feeling well enough to study?"

"I've got to. I haven't finished and I don't know if I will feel better tomorrow."

The woman looked towards the stack of books. "Don't stay up too late. I'll bring you dinner soon."

"Wait, mom," he stopped her, "If dad makes it to dinner, please tell me. I want to eat at the table if he does."

She smiled and nodded. "Alright. I'll call you." The woman walked out of his room.

Left alone, Light couldn't help but think back to his talk with Frost. There was a possibility he had tried to give him a warning, one that Light failed to understand at the right time. Caterina would have noticed it right away. At the same time, he was dying to turn on the TV and watch the news. There had to be something on the disappearance of Vittorio… But perhaps it was too early.

He also needed to do some research on Ivan Frost, and there was that woman watching him in the park earlier that left as soon as he noticed her presence. Well, rather Ryuk drew his attention on her, but she had no way of knowing about Ryuk. There was a good chance that someone else was watching him, someone other than Frost or L.

The next day, Light called his colleague and asked for the favor to be returned. Midori's new boyfriend wasn't even awake at 6 am, but he somehow found his phone and answered.

"I know it's early," Light began, "but I need to ask you a favor. It's a huge one."

 _'Well… now? I mean, it's… like, still night and all…'_

"If you wake up now, you'll have enough time. I'll send you a message with what I need. I don't want my dad to hear," he continued. "Don't fall back asleep, alright? I'll call you back in five."

 _'Oh, man… What's so important? It's six in the morning…'_

Unsure if L was still watching or not, Light sighed and decided to keep the details private. "It is, alright? I'm not feeling well enough to solve my own problems."

Even Ryuk was surprised to see him awake so early, but he knew Light wouldn't answer him as long as the cameras were still there. When Kira threw him a look, he understood the question. _'They're still here, the cameras and the microphones. Hey, do you think he's watching at this hour?'_

Naturally, Light didn't answer. Instead, he went to the bathroom and did his usual morning routine, then brew some coffee for his father and himself in the kitchen. Light kept going over the passages that he highlighted in one of the textbooks, constantly reviewing the information, one page after another. He stopped to text his colleague the instructions, then went back to studying.

A phone call woke up his father, who followed his son downstairs. "Light? What are you doing up at this hour? You didn't study all night, did you?"

He looked up and smiled. "Ah, no, I fell asleep around… eleven, I think? Right after dinner."

The man nodded. "Son, your mother told me. Law school is going to be very difficult, but I have no doubts that you're going to be the first there."

"Thank you. Ah, do you want some coffee?"

"Thanks, but no, not yet. What I want is that you take it easier with your studies. You're going to pass perfectly, like always."

Light looked down. "Dad, I'm not going to score a perfect 100% if I take it easy. The entrance exams are tough, the competition as well. I'm taking my breaks, don't worry – but I need to know everything and more in order to succeed. I'm not going to be just any judge. I want to be the best judge in the country, and later, in the whole world. I want to rival L, to put it this way… But of course, he's going to be the one who sends me the criminals," he joked.

The thought amused his father as well. "Well, then… It's not impossible for you."

"Really?" His eyes lit up. "Have you seen L? Is he old or young?"

"I have, and he's… very unusual. He's a strange individual. He may be a few years older than you, so there's a chance you will work together one day."

"That would be so great… I can't even imagine what it's like to work with a legend," Light went on. He poured himself a cup of coffee and sat at the table in front of his book.

"Challenging, but also rewarding. Every single one of us has so much to learn, you know? Even if we've been doing our jobs for a lifetime." He remembered Matsuda all of a sudden. "Well, not all, but most of us."

Light smiled with the joy of receiving some information, which his father and L were probably going to mistake for admiration. "It doesn't surprise me. I mean, he's known as a genius, right?"

The man nodded. "Light, were you talking to someone earlier?"

It was the confirmation that L was still watching. When Light made the call, the house was still submerged into a deadly silence. There was no chance his father could have heard him. "Yeah…" Light lowered his gaze and frowned slightly, pretending to be ashamed.

"Go on," his father asked him.

"I… Dad, please don't get mad at me. And don't tell mom. Please! It's the first time I do this, and definitely the last, but I've got so many things on my plate right now, it's just too difficult." Once he saw his father scared something bad might have happened, he finally let it out. "I asked a friend to help me finish a group project for me. It was my part, but I have to focus on studying. He's sure he will get into a university, he's not stressed by this matter, and besides, he owed me."

"Light… what exactly did he owe you?" The man was watching him severely.

"I asked a girl to give him a chance and go out with him. He owed me a favor. But it's the only time I've done this, the first and last time – I swear. That's why I called at that hour. I thought… that everyone would be asleep," he mumbled.

"That's not how I've raised you! This is a lie that you're going to present to your teachers and you will be graded for someone else's work. If you did this at your workplace, you could go to prison."

Light nodded. "I know, father. I'm sorry. But I'm making good use of the time I won this way. It's the last time, I promise."

Although not entirely satisfied, the father decided to let it slip this one time. His son seemed truly remorseful, and that aspect was more important now. "I want you to understand the gravity of your mistake, Light. Never do it again, do you hear me? Not even I could help you if you got caught with something similar."

"I understand, father. I'm going to present the project tomorrow, it's the last for our graduation. I've done the research and summed some of it up. I've read everything, so I can present it just fine. But it's this last step that takes so much time – it means going over the materials, making summaries, plotting everything in order, setting it in the main document, writing the references and the sources… I've done something, you see, and I thought I'd have time to finish. It's just that somehow, I've taken longer than I imagined to study."

The chief took his packed lunch from the fridge and poured himself some coffee. "Very well… I won't tell your mother, but be careful that nobody finds out. That teammate of yours could blackmail you with this, if he knows the law."

"I doubt it. He really loves that girl. I've left her and made her run straight into his arms, so if he says anything, I'm going to take her back and he knows we don't compare."

The man was impressed, and so was Ryuk. _'…How much is a lie and how much is the truth? I'm confused.'_

"Light… you surprise me," was all that his father could say.

"I had to take my safety measures. Believe me when I say – it's perfectly safe. No one will ever find out. And even if they do – it's going to be his word against mine. I know both my part and his part of the project." He couldn't help but smirk. His father could finally see his genius at work.

Shaking his head, the man got ready to leave for work. "For this, I'm expecting you to score perfectly on every exam, son. Ninety-nine percent will be the equivalent of failure in my eyes."

In the mean time, someone was already surfing the internet. Rin had gotten a hint from one of her online friends about a hacker writing an article accusing Namikawa Reiji of murder. Even if she didn't see the article yet, the girl began to immediately search the dark side of the web for evidence. The connections led her to…

"The Russian Mafia?" Namikawa asked. He was still in bed, barely keeping his eyes open. "Are you sure?" he mumbled. It was a strange wake up, indeed. Rin was standing by the foot of his bed, watching him with wide, black eyes and a round, pale face. The sun was just rising and it was a little past 6:30.

"Affirmative. The Russian Mafia. You didn't tell me you were involved."

"Involved in what? …Rin, why don't you wait for me downstairs and we can talk over some coffee?"

"Just don't fall back asleep. You've got five minutes."

Surprised, he frowned. "What's the rush?"

"A friend is making a video game public in five minutes and I have to be there and take it before he takes it down. It's a file too large to be sent any other way." The girl turned around and left.

Reiji sighed and rubbed his face with his hands. What was all that talk about the Russian Mafia? He was confused… Forcing himself to stand up, he went to the bathroom then changed from his pajamas. When he saw Rin, the girl was already on her laptop in the living room.

"Should I make you some tea?" It was difficult to keep in mind she was still in middle school.

"No, thanks. Coffee is fine," she replied. "I figured you would need more than five minutes, so I took my laptop with me."

Namikawa nodded and went to brew some coffee. "What was it that you wanted to discuss?"

"The Russian Mafia will frame you for murder and work without a contract, torture, and possibly more. They're going to claim you use slaves that you torture for your own amusement and then kill once you're bored."

Fully awake, the man felt his heart beating faster. "What?! How can you be sure of this?!"

"Someone told me they're already writing an article for the light web. It's already on the dark web."

"What's that?" He was clueless, which only made him feel more agitated and nervous than before. His throat was dry and swallowing his own saliva was like swallowing a fistful of nails. Someone knew about Vittorio, and that someone was in the Russian Mafia. This whole thing was escalating out of control faster than he thought possible.

"Google it," she answered him. "Anyway, they're making this whole thing public in a few hours, or maybe a day, if we're lucky. I can trace the article and take it down, but there's always a possibility up to ten people will see it every time it's being posted, which means people could save it into their personal computers, take it off the net, where I can't reach."

"Is there any way I can get out of this?"

Rin began chewing her cheeks and her lips. "…I don't know. I'd have to see the article first."

"It means that everyone could see it! The police? My superiors? My father! I'm going to be ruined!"

"Maybe that's the whole idea. Someone wants to ruin you. Did you bother anyone lately?" the girl asked.

Reiji poured two cups of coffee, took his, then sat on the couch in front of the hacker girl. "…I don't know. What about the enterprises we wrecked? Did you check those? Are they involved with the Mafia?"

Rin went back to her seat, taking her coffee with her. "Nope. I double-checked. They were clean, from this point of view."

"Are you sure? Did you check their clients? Their providers? Their associates? Their families?"

"All. Nothing. Nada. Moving on." Rin leaned in her seat. "Your Wi-Fi is so slow! It takes forever to download something!"

Namikawa began thinking of everyone he knew, but couldn't think of anyone associated with the Russians. "That's about it. I didn't disrespect anyone, didn't get involved in anything…"

"There must be something, though. They don't just come all the way to Japan to ruin you randomly."

That's when it hit him. "That's right… They wouldn't come all the way to the Asian headquarters when they are at war with the European headquarters. That must be it! The European branch has been investing in the East side of the continent, which is predominantly their market, so they're trying to target the Asian branch."

"Why would they do that?" Rin was lost. To her, it was a waste of resources.

"They try to disturb the inner balance of the global corporation. This way, the European branch will lose financial support because the corporation will have to invest in rehabilitating the image of the Asian branch. At the same time, by targeting me, they also target my father, who is in charge of the American branch."

Rin nodded. "Now I get it… So it's not a waste of resources, it's a war strategy. That makes more sense."

Caterina woke up as well. She was a light sleeper, so she heard Namikawa and Rin talking downstairs. "What's the matter? Did anything happen?"

"The Russians are trying to frame me for murder as part of an economic war they're not going to declare openly, so the Yotsuba corporation doesn't know how to react."

"Wait…" she immediately said, "It's not just that. It's Light – he helped them."

"Who?" The man was confused. He had entirely forgotten about that teenager's existence.

"Yagami Light. My ex. He knew Vitto, he also knows us. He's the one who told them where to look. Also… he took advantage of a mistake we made. I taught him this back when I was hiding in China with Padre."

He watched her walking down the stairs with her bed head mane. She was in a pair of shorts and a tank top and he couldn't take his eyes off her legs. "What are you talking about? We did everything the way you said."

"Except I forgot to tell you to throw away your phone. Padre was very careful about this – we threw away the SIM card every time we moved and replaced the phone every month or sooner. That way, nobody could track us down. It's what Light told them – to track down your phone." Sighing, she covered her eyes with her hand and shook her head. "Such a stupid mistake! It was the first thing we should have done!"

Namikawa was staring blankly ahead. There had to be a way out of this mess… "What if we move the body?"

"…It's one idea. But they probably secured the area already. The Russians are resourceful, just like the Americans. Maybe… we might have a chance if we destroy the evidence from afar. Maybe a bomb, or something…"

"How about vandals?" Rin interrupted her. "If it's the Bridge of the Damned, then it could be an idea to pay vandals. Many go there to sell and buy s.h.d."

"What's that?" Namikawa asked.

"Second hand drugs. Low quality. Affordable."

Caterina nodded. "I won't ask how you know about this. But it's a good idea. And cheap, too."

Namikawa followed her with his eyes until she entered the kitchen. "Then, I'll let you two handle this. I have to call Yukimura."

"Who's that?" Rin asked.

"My lawyer. He has to be prepared for this."

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock.**_

 _I'm really glad to hear from you, either through reviews or PM. Light's plan is revealed! Both the A and the B plan, if you can call it that way. At the same time, Caterina and Light will eventually get back together, but for now, they're still at war with each other - and neither of them knows how to lose. They're in a 'complicated relationship'._

 _At this point, it's very interesting for me as well. The original plot I've sketched for Gospel was entirely different, which means that now, I can only make short term planning. I will most likely post another story with character sheets, plot ideas that didn't make it into the story and other insights, if there are a few readers of Gospel who want to read something like that._


	48. XLVII - Allies

_XLVII - Allies_

* * *

"The date is January 14th. Don't forget to write your name. After that, fold the corner like this, and wait for my colleague and I to seal your paper. The exam subjects have arrived and we should receive them any minute now. I'm going to unseal those at 8:30." One of the two teachers looked at a girl sharply. "Please unwrap the paper from your bottle and throw it in the trash bin."

"But I just bought it from the school's store, sir. Is it necessary?"

"It is, I'm afraid. Those are the rules." He watched her throw away the paper wrap and return to her seat. "As you know, you are not allowed to have your own papers. I will hand you one sheet for your personal markings and brainstorming, and if you write over three pages, all you have to do is raise your hand and you will receive another exam sheet. You will fill in your name in the squared corner, like you did with the first sheet, and then continue writing."

Light turned his sheet towards the teacher coming to seal it, so the paper would be anonymous when it gets corrected and graded. "Good luck, Yagami," she smiled.

"Thank you." In truth, he wasn't worried at all. He told Ryuk to wait outside so he wouldn't be distracted by the shinigami staring at someone in a very creepy way or complaining about how bored he was halfway through the exam.

Namikawa's lawyer checked his bank account at the first hour in the morning. He grinned like a snake when he saw that Reiji had paid him the exact amount for which he asked and a few hundred dollars extra – just to make sure, probably. The lawyer put on his black suit and stiff white shirt then called his driver to take him to the police section.

Kitamura was surprised to hear someone claimed to have scheduled an audience at that hour. He didn't remember it and his agenda didn't either. However, he decided to let his visitor in. He was in a situation when he couldn't afford to be choosy.

"Good morning, Mr. Kitamura. Do you have half an hour? I'm afraid there's something important that we have to discuss. It's about your daughter's trial."

The superintendent froze in his seat. "About Amai? Did something happen?"

"To her? No… This is about another client of mine who is also very generous, just like your bother, sir. Let me say that I appreciate your family's generosity…"

"I thought you said you would be accepting this case for free."

"Free of financial charges, yes, but I'm afraid it won't be free. You see, I don't work for free – it's a family superstition. It's bad luck to work for free, Mr. Kiramura. I have a small favor to ask of you – really small. Some wouldn't even call it a favor." The lawyer grinned as he took the visitor's seat at the superintendent's desk.

Koreyoshi was nervous. He was fidgeting with a pen, trying to hide how worried he was. "What do you need me to do?"

"But first of all, let's talk about the trial. I understand that your daughter found some surveillance cameras in your house, correct? Where exactly?"

He nodded and decided to go along with it. "The first one she found was in the bathroom, replacing the magnet that holds a cabinet's door closed."

"So the view could be compromising, correct?"

"Well… yes, I think so."

The lawyer clarified. "Does that angle offer a view of the shower or bath tub? Or of the toilet?"

"It covers the whole bathroom, yes." After the lawyer nodded, he continued. "The second was in her bedroom, in the library. It was hidden between books and had a view of the entire bedroom, including the bed, the dressing, and the desk where she does her homework."

"Alright… And the third?"

"Excuse me, why aren't you taking any notes?"

The old man raised a bushy, white eyebrow. "Do I look like I need to take notes on paper?"

"No. Please excuse me. The third one she found was also in her bedroom, on a shelf of CDs above her desk. It covers the surface of the desk."

"What if she opens some drawers? Could the camera cover those?"

The man thought for a moment. "I don't know. It's possible. It depends on the camera's coverage."

"Does your daughter keep any diary or a burn book?"

The father frowned. "A burn book? My daughter would never hold such a thing."

"Girls usually keep one or both of these at her age. It's normal and they are usually very private about these, so I wouldn't be surprised if you don't know. I'm going to have to ask her the same questions, sir, and compare your answers. It's the standard procedure."

"I know," Kitamura sighed. "What do you want me to do?"

Yukimura smirked. "Well, first you have to understand that L has a lot of money. When we win this trial, you can ask for compensations – enough to secure the girl's future. You can even cover up the cost of her treatment for 50 years or longer."

The man nodded. "At what cost, sir?"

"Well… I need you to pick up a case, Mr. Kitamura, and lead the investigation. You will get involved, appear driven to succeed so that nobody suspects a thing, but secretly lead the investigation towards a neutral conclusion. You will not have enough evidence to connect a murder to my client so he can keep his image clean."

Kitamura stood up with his hands against the desk. "Are you asking me to help a murderer escape?!"

"On the contrary, sir. My client is innocent, but a rival is trying to frame him for murder." The lawyer was calm and confident, but Kitamura still couldn't believe it.

"Then, we're going to find the real murderer and send him behind bars! If you client is as innocent as you say, he has nothing to fear."

"The setting is very well-made, sir. Please," he gestured towards the chair and asked Kitamura to sit down. "They used my client's car. The victim worked for my client. Of course, there is no motive here, but just to be certain… You see, my client is a very important man, with business on two continents. He comes from a prestigious family and has worked his way through schools and successful projects to get where he is now. It would be a shame to destroy a man's life because someone decided to throw some dirt. He could even be your son, in terms of age."

The last phrase caught him defenseless. Kitamura had a stillborn son before his daughter was born. "I-I… I will see what can be done. But I can't promise you anything!"

"Of course, just like I can't promise that L won't find a way to win the trial," the lawyer shrugged. "But you know what they say, you can't control the future…" He stood up and began walking towards the door.

"…Wait!" Kitamura called him back. "I'm going to take the case. I'll see what I can do. If it's not obvious that your client is guilty, I think… I think I may be able to do what you asked."

"Ah, excellent!" Yukimura grinned over his shoulder. "I'd love to sit and talk some more, but I have to be in court in half an hour. It's a pleasure working with you, Mr. Kitamura."

Half an hour later, the lawyer met up with Caterina in a restaurant. She was already waiting at a table in the back. No one paid her much attention before, but when they saw such an old man sitting at her table, the entire restaurant began whispering.

"Good morning, dear. Did the plan go accordingly?"

Caterina nodded. "I bought them with just two hundred."

"Do you have proof?" he asked, as a waiter was approaching them.

"Yes. They sent me a video on a phone number I bought earlier this morning. I already destroyed it. The car was covered in motor oil and set on fire. They used a bottle with medical alcohol and a cloth set on fire to light it up. There's no way anything could be collected from the car."

"Can it be identified anymore?" the lawyer continued.

"The plate numbers were already off, so probably not. They'd have to drain the swamp and the river in order to look for them." She sighed and ran a hand through her hair, pushing back a few locks. "How about you?"

"Don't worry," the lawyer smirked. "You two were in luck. I have a client who will do me a favor. His image won't be stained, but you're going to have to pay for this…"

Caterina frowned. "He already paid you more than you requested."

"Yes, of course, but there were some complications that I had to manage, and you know… Time means money. But if you think you can manage on your own from here, I'd be glad to withdraw."

"…I thought you had a history with the family." Caterina began to grow more and more suspicious about him.

"But I do – I never lie, young mistress. The difference is that previously, those I defended were innocent. My job was a lot easier."

She sighed deeply, trying to keep her calm. If it was one thing she hated more than Ross, it was the feeling of being cornered. "We're going to negotiate tonight. Is that alright? In this restaurant at ten."

The man nodded. "Eight is fine. Thank you for considering my schedule."

She felt her blood starting to boil. That old man was disrespecting her and she had no way of reacting because Namikawa still needed him… "At eight, then." Right when the waiter was approaching their table, she stood up, took her purse and her coat, and left the restaurant.

"Have a nice day!" the lawyer called after her, laughing to himself. "You there – come here, boy. Recommend me something, please," he addressed the waiter.

Caterina went straight to the Yotsuba headquarters, trying to reach Namikawa. There was something they had to decide carefully, and there was a chance he wouldn't be able to be at the restaurant by eight.

However, there was something that didn't even cross her mind. The vandals took pity into a homeless man who had been freezing under the bridge for a while. When they reached him, he seemed dead of hypothermia or frostbite, but they were surprised to feel the pulse at his neck.

"Hey, man, wake up! Yo!" one of them tried bringing him back to his senses.

The other slapped him a few times. "Dude, come on! Wake up. You're gonna freeze to death."

The man was slowly coming to his senses. His clothes were frozen and his skin was turning purple. He looked through the two boys trying to help him. "…Who are you?" He saw the car on fire on the opposite shore of the river.

"I'm Goro, he's Eiji. We've set up camp close." He tried to lift up the man by his shoulders, but the man couldn't stand on his own. Instead, he cringed and screamed in pain.

"Yo, man, his legs probably froze for good by now." Eiji picked him up from his other side and the two carried the man through the frozen swamp to a small abandoned construction. It was simply a cement floor with four walls and a roof that the boys had covered with plastic bags and cardboard. They also sealed the window with plastic and duct tape so they'd have some light inside, but keep out the cold. A pallet with cardboard and plastic tied around it with wire was replacing the door along with a cloth hanged as a curtain over it.

Inside, there were dirty clothes stacked together to form something like a mattress or a carpet. The boys also had a place in the middle of the room where they would burn trash in order to keep warm. They kicked some syringes into a corner and let the stranger sit down while Goro made the fire.

The man watched them closely. Eiji looked like a child, but his eyes were much more mature. He wasn't very tall and kept his hair in many thin braids, tied back into a half pony. He had no facial hair, but a piercing in his lower lip and several on both ears.

Goro looked like he was in his late twenties. He had a small beard cut chaotically and his hair was a mess of dark curls, reaching his shoulders. He had no piercings, but the man could see part of a tattoo at the base of his neck. Both of them were wearing dirty jeans and workout hoodies with a few other layers underneath.

"What's your name?" Eiji asked him, sitting beside him.

"…Kaito Ryuu," the man finally answered after some thought.

The kid began to laugh. "Kinda ironic, hah? Not really a dragon, man. More like a frog."

The man turned and punched him, but the kid had fast reflexes and caught his fist. "Don't disrespect me. If you help me, I'm going to return the favor. But I need time for that… And papers. Can any of you get me a phone with a new number?"

Eiji and Goro looked at each other. "Man, who are you? Did someone try to kill you?" Goro asked.

"Answer me. If you're useful to me, when I rise, you will as well."

Eiji nodded. "I think I can. When do you need it?"

"Soon. As soon as you can get it. How old are you two?" Kaito asked.

"I'm 24. He's 16," Goro answered. "Why?"

"Do you have papers? How did you get here?" Kaito continued.

"We ran away from home. We needed money for drugs, but then, the dealer disappeared," the elder of the two said. "You don't look like one, but if you're a cop, I'm gonna kill you."

"I'm not a fuckin' cop. I wanna kill a cop and his son, and the son's girlfriend, and a few other people, but I need papers and a new ID for that." He leaned on his hand and laid down. "My legs are broken. If I don't go to a hospital, the infection will kill me soon enough."

"Yo… dude, what the hell happened to you?" Eiji asked. He noticed the unnatural position of his legs and how the man didn't look bothered at all.

"Go out and get me a phone. You two are gonna be my sons. I did many things, but I never forgot those who helped me when I needed it…" He frowned towards Eiji. "Now move it. I ain't got all day."

The kid stood up and walked past Goro. He nodded towards the man discreetly and Goro nodded to sign that he understood. After that, Eiji pulled the hood over his head and left. The teenager was still unsure if this man was their second chance in life, or the one who was going to end it, but no matter the case… that man looked important.

The next day, Goro was sent out with an equally important mission. He was going to meet with a man at the train station and pretend he was Kaito Ryuu, aged 45, Japanese, divorced, and with two children. He was going to answer the stranger's questions and avoid showing his face in order to gain a fake ID for the stranger. The papers were going to be delivered without a photograph – it was up to Kaito to solve that issue.

In the meantime, an article became viral on the internet in a short time after being published. It claimed that the Vice President of Sales of the Yotsuba corporation's Asian branch, Namikawa Reiji, had been using Vicenzo Vargas as a slave then murdered him over a minor incident. It appeared under many names: "Vice President of Slaves? Murdered slave found dead!", "Immigrant gone missing, possibly murdered by Japanese businessman", "The Yotsuba hidden slave labor program".

When Namikawa walked out of the Yotsuba headquarters, the reporters were already there. He hated it, but couldn't let this show – it would only ruin his image further.

"Mr. Reiji, how do you comment on the accusations?" a blonde asked.

"It is most obviously a set up," he answered briefly.

"Mr. Reiji, did you hire an immigrant without a legal contract? Is it true that you were not paying his salary or the contributions you owe to the state?"

"I owe no contributions to the state that I haven't already paid. I dare the authorities to prove I am one yen behind with my payments towards the state."

"Did you use slave labor, Mr. Reiji?" a man asked. "Are you involved in slave trading?"

"This whole case is a set up. I will contact my lawyer and I wish to ask the police to open an investigation. I have done no such things!" Reiji barely made his way to the new car he had bought the day after the murder.

"Why have you changed your car, Mr. Reiji? How did you afford it?" a brunette asked.

"Good question. Please do some research – my previous was seven-years-old, and I bought this car in leasing." Smiling, Namikawa started the engine and waited for the reporters to make way. He drove away as soon as the road was free. Hopefully, no one could see how stressed he was or how his palms had been sweating.

When he parked the car in front of his house, Reiji noticed there were paparazzi hiding in the bushes and behind the fences of his neighbors. He walked inside like nothing happened, closed the door, then sighed in relief. He loosened the tie around his neck and took off his shoes. "Caterina? Rin?"

Caterina looked over the railway. She was wearing one towel around her body and another one on her head. "You're home early."

"Yes… Have you heard? It's in the press already." He sounded almost desperate, but still capable of controlling himself.

"I've heard. Rin warned us about this. It seems there is a group of three reporters working with more press companies that had downloaded the article in the first ten seconds after it's been published. They had been informed where to look for it and at what time, very precisely. Rin thinks that by tracking them, we will eventually reach the Russian Mafia." She went into her room, but left the door open. By this point, she had grown comfortable around Namikawa and trusted him enough to know he won't try to see her naked. "But it doesn't mean that they're part of the Mafia, you know?"

He remained downstairs in the living room. Reiji was trying to recap everything that happened. "Caterina, please bring me some paper and a pen from my desk."

After getting dressed, she went into his room to get the paper and pen. "I still don't understand something. If we blew up the car, why did you insist for me to meet up with your lawyer last night?"

Namikawa looked up. "I need to be certain nothing will happen," he sighed. After Caterina sat by his side, he took the paper and began writing down the main events from the past few weeks. "We still don't know for sure who ordered that mall assault. Also, could it be possible for Vittorio to have had a reason for being so agitated?"

She held her knees close and leaned into her seat. "I guess… But these are only assumptions. There's nothing certain."

"I'm afraid that's all we've got for now. You know I'm not adept of this strategy, but the only thing left for us to do is formulate theories and hypotheses, then start verifying them. Everything false gets ruled out, until we're left with the truth."

Caterina shook her head. "I don't like this. I say we should wait. Let's focus on the murder case – it demands all of our attention. Ross and Frost can wait.

Just then, Rin walked out of her room and went to turn on the TV in the living room. "Look. The police will open an investigation."

Light was also watching the news report. Just like he anticipated, it was shaking the Yotsuba group's credibility and staining their image greatly. The press was full of sharks waiting to uncover such juicy stories, even if they eventually turned out to be fake.

In truth, there was a chance that Caterina had helped Reiji cover up their tracks and destroy some evidence. It was very likely that Reiji will come up with a brilliant lawyer who had a chance to win the case in court. However, his image was stained for a long time from now on, and he was going to be kept under observation for a while – both by the police and by the media.

He went downstairs and offered to do the groceries for his mom, just to have an excuse to leave the house. Kira went to check his bank account before anything else, then called his colleague. To his surprise, it was Midori who picked up.

 _'Yes? Who is it?'_

Instantly, he knew that the number was not saved. "I'm calling from the book store. Someone ordered ' _Crime and Punishment_ ' and left this number for contact," he immediately came up with a lie. He was passing by a book store and decided to mimic Frost.

 _'Oh! That had to be my boyfriend. He's in the shower now, though. Is it alright if I tell him to call back in a few minutes? Or I could come and pick up the book for him.'_

"He needs to sign for the delivery, I'm sorry. Tell him to call back as soon as he can, please. Thank you." Light looked around and bought the classic, lingering between the shelves full of books for a few minutes longer than needed.

 _'Is it for that device you ordered?'_ Ryuk asked, as he was looking around as well.

Light nodded. "Frost sent me almost double the money that I needed so I can afford a few more things. This will give us an excuse to meet without awakening anyone's suspicion. You can never know… Midori did work with Pember before, after all."

 _'Do you think she might work with L? Don't you think that's too much?'_

"It never hurt to be too cautious. If it's one thing Caterina kept repeating to me over and over, it's this. I'd rather be safe than sorry." He kept browsing through the books signed by the same Russian author of the book he received from Frost.

Light could only find the second and the forth volumes of the series. Also, there were no biographic bits on the covers or inside those books. He couldn't find anything else, which was odd, considering how well-written the novel was.

 _'What exactly are you looking for?'_ The shinigami was easily bored.

"I don't know precisely. I need something useful, something that can prove that Frost is the writer…" he mumbled. "And maybe his real name." Just then, his phone rang and he answered it in silence. Light was waiting to hear the voice of his colleague and only talk once he was certain it was him. "How fast can you reach the supermarket by the metro station in my quarter?"

 _'I don't know… Fifteen minutes, I guess?'_

Light looked towards Ryuk with a small grin. "In twenty, then. Take your time. We'll meet just outside, at the left corner – your left." After he hung up, he paid for the book and went to buy what his mother needed.

In less than an hour, Light returned with the groceries and with a tablet that could double as a TV or a radio with no problem. He hid it in a bag of potato chips then went back upstairs into his room.

 _'Hey… Light? The cameras are gone,'_ the shinigami noticed. It immediately began looking for them everywhere. 'They're not here anymore.'

Light's eyes widened. "Are you sure?"

 _'Of course! I've looked everywhere – all of 'em are gone!'_

He couldn't believe his ears. Light checked for himself in order to take Ryuk seriously. "…I think the universe just joined my team," he grinned. Taking out a hardcover notebook he had bought last year with the intention of keeping a planner for his school projects, then began measuring the tablet and the pages of the notebook. Cutting through the pages and gluing the frames together, he was left with a solid frame fitting the tablet perfectly. Rubber bands were attached in order to keep the tablet in place.

 _'I honestly don't know what that's for, but it looks cool.'_

"This is for using the tablet without others knowing it. I can hold it this way and it looks like I'm just reading through my notes," Kira demonstrated. "It's also great for protecting the device from shocks, heat or sunlight, so that's a bonus. But the main reason is for the tablet to look just like any other notebook. Now, for the other notebook…"

 _'Which one?'_ Ryuk was fascinated. He watched Light closely as he emptied a drawer in his desk.

"For the Death Note, of course." He made a simple circuit using copper wire, a battery, some pen pieces made of metal and a piece of rubber attacked to a fake bottom. "I'm also going to keep a few pages of the Death Note on me at all times, but just in case someone comes searching the room… a short circuit will spark a flame, destroying the Death Note instantly."

 _'Ooh! But then, you're only be left with those pages.'_

"That's your job to find me another Death Note in case things go that way. And if anyone gets suspicious, I'm going to say it was a journal and I didn't want anyone reading it. Any psychologist will support me in this, saying that it's perfectly normal at my age and so on."

Later that evening, he went to sleep feeling lonelier than ever. Ever since Caterina had left him, he had been feeling lonelier than usual – it was the main reason why he took advantage of Midori, using her and then selling her in exchange of a delivery. Caterina's words from the last time they spoke kept twisting his mind, making him turn from one side to the other in bed with no chance of falling asleep. How could she say that she'd ' _fall with the rest of the rotten world_ '? It was absurd!

Yet, if he knew what she did, especially with what she was about to do, he would probably hesitate less than a second in writing down her name. The girl had trouble sleeping alone too, finding Light's voice invading her thoughts and the memories of their better days taking over her dreams. In the middle of the night, she stood up and let her feet take a few quiet steps out of her room and into the room of her partner for the past month.

She was surprised to find Namikawa sitting at the desk in his room, still awake and working on something. He closed the notebooks and gathered the papers into a file when he heard her sneaking in. "What's wrong?" he asked softly, turning towards her.

"Can't sleep," she mumbled. "I can't stop… thinking…"

"Of what?" the man asked her, waiting for her to walk into his arms. When she didn't reply, he understood that he wasn't the reason of her insomnia. In truth, both of them knew, but both decided to ignore Light's whole existence.

Clueless about her betrayal, Kira went downstairs to warm himself a cup of milk in the microwave and melt two teaspoons of honey in it with some poppy seed paste. With his hot drink and the hope of falling into a forced sleep, he climbed back to his room and tried to stop his mind from obsessing over Caterina. He set the phone on the side of the bed where she slept once or twice, then closed his eyes for a few long seconds.

When he opened them again, the sun was already up. His phone showed he had slept a little over 1pm. He felt numb, covered in a thin layer of sweat and with his jaws tense. Whatever it was that he dreamed, it couldn't have been anything pleasant. Perhaps it was better he couldn't remember it. Light forced himself out of bed and dragged his feet to the bathroom. He couldn't stand himself without a shower.

It was the last day before the entrance exams and Light could barely focus on what he was reading. Eventually, he gave up and threw himself on the bed, reading the novel that Frost had sent him.

Caterina also woke up late. She didn't hear Namikawa leaving to work in the morning, but she woke up across his bed, with her legs wrapped around the blanket and her arms covering her face from the sun. Since the maid didn't want to wake her, Rin decided to walk in.

"'Morning, sleeping beauty. It's half past one - even I'd be awake by now. I mean, I heard stories of exhaustion and stuff, but come on," she threw her a half smirk.

Still confused, Caterina stook up and tried to cover herself. "What are you doing here? Get out!"

"The maid wants to clean the room. Hurry up – she wants to be done by two." Still amused, the girl eventually left.

She looked for her pajamas and got dressed. Caterina still couldn't believe what she did, but the more awake she became, the more certain she was of one thing only. Whatever pushed her into that room was unimportant. She had no regrets and felt no guilt. It was simply surprising – unexpectedly good, unimaginably soft, but still exhausting.

Her phone rang a little while after she went to her room. Caterina had gotten undressed again, looking through the dresser for something to wear. She picked up without paying it much thought. "Yes?"

 _'Caterina Rosa… Amadeo? Is that the correct pronunciation?'_ a man's voice asked. It was calm, trying too hard to seem friendly and warm. It made her suspicious.

"That would be the correct one, yes. May I know who is speaking?" Caterina covered her chest and turned to look towards the windows. She couldn't see anyone trying to peek through the curtains.

 _'Suguru Shimura, calling from the Yotsuba corporation. I understand that you could help rehabilitate the company's image, correct?'_

"Depends on the information you have, sir. How did you obtain my number, if I'm not being disrespectful? I do have the right to know, you realize." Caterina leaned against the door of her dressing.

 _'Why don't you come pay us a visit? We can clarify more this way, you realize,'_ the man returned her words with a hint of passive-aggressiveness. _'I am the head of personnel, and I believe we can arrange a collaboration contract that would benefit both the corporation and yourself, miss.'_

Still suspicious, she decided to go along with it. "At what hour should I be there? And in what room, if you don't mind?"

 _'Is it alright by three in the main conference room?'_

"It's perfect." Caterina hung up before the other could say another word. "Shimura, he said… Head of Personnel." Smirking, she took out a pair of black dress pants and a burgundy shirt.

Rin was stuffing her mouth with food when she heard Caterina's heels coming down the stairs. "And where do you think you're going like that?"

"I've got to negotiate a few things. Please order a cab for me." She went to the kitchen for a cup of coffee and two cereal biscuits. In the meantime, she tried calling Namikawa, but all she heard was a busy tone.

Reiji was still in a meeting with the rest of the vice presidents. He tried keeping a straight face and show none of his worries, but the atmosphere was only getting more tense. Everyone's eyes were on him, asking him to defend himself over and over again.

"Sales going down mean lower profit, you realize. In this rhythm, we're going to lose half of our income in four months and half," Shingo Mido commented, leaning with his head on his hand.

"We should invest more in advertising," Eiichi Takashi concluded.

"That's enough," Ooi sighed. "We will be taking a break for half an hour. We meet again at 2:30 sharp."

Reiji was relieved, but couldn't show it. Shimura was always watching and he was the most observant of them. The thought only stressed him more. And then, there was that moment when he walked out of the meeting room, supposedly going to the bathroom…

When he left the conference room, he looked at his phone and saw a missed call from Caterina. Namikawa asked his secretary for coffee and decided to call her back. "Yes, my dear? Has anything happened?"

 _'I'm in a cab right now. I'll be there in a minute, alright? Just don't let anyone guess what's really going on.'_

He frowned slightly, safe in the privacy of his office. "What do you mean by that?" When he heard the reason behind Shimura's moment of ' _weakness_ ', he instantly knew what they were trying to do. Ooi was certainly behind this, and he probably wanted to prove Caterina unable of administrating her father's business empire and manipulate her into leaving everything to him. By law, Reiji would have no saying it that situation.

"Listen to me, sweetheart – prepare your speech well. Present everything clearly. They're going to interrupt you, ask you irrelevant questions, and try to intimidate you. I won't be able to stand up for you…"

 _'I know,'_ she answered him, _'I borrowed an agenda from you and I've been making notes of everything that has happened lately. Don't worry… We both knew it would eventually happen.'_

The secretary brought him his coffee. He nodded in thanks, then took a sip. "Try to be here earlier. The break ends at 2:30, and Mr. Ooi doesn't tolerate delays."

 _'Shimura told me to be there by 3:00. Another trick, you think?'_

"Most likely. Watch out for him, he's… very attentive. More than Mr. Ooi, he's going to read you and mimic your body language."

Naturally, he was worried – their futures were both on the line. Reiji drank some more of his coffee, trying to kill a headache with the help of a pill. Those meetings were pressuring even for him even when he had years of experience and knew the field extremely well. He couldn't imagine how it would be for Caterina, considering that she's probably never attended such a meeting before. Her only chance would be to rely on the cold blood and on the predator instincts that she could have inherited from her father. Reiji wasn't certain she had those qualities, and it worried him greatly.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Thanks to **AbandonedSock** proofreading yet another chapter, it could be published. Also, I want to thank **HisRedRose123** for the support, once again! The first character sheet and the next chapter are going to be published as soon as they're being proofread, just to make sure they're decent in terms of grammar and typos. _


	49. XLVIII - Face to Face

_XLVIII –Face to Face_

* * *

Some of them were tense. Others had no idea why they had to resume the meeting. The only certainty was the tension in between them as the air was becoming harder to breathe and glances were being shot like bullets – accusing, demanding answers, and looking forward to a heated argument.

Reiji knew that Shimura was aware of his agitation. However, neither decided to point out the matter just yet. Namikawa kept pretending that he knew nothing and the other kept looking at the clock. It was still 2:29.

"Someone remind me again, why exactly haven't we started already?" the youngest of them, Arayoshi Hatori asked. "And what's left to talk about? The sales are dropping. It's his job to fix it, not ours," he looked towards Reiji.

"Patience," Shimura demanded.

"If you look closer, you can easily see that everything in this corporation is related. If one of the departments has a problem, it affects my department, and his, and yours too." What Shingo Mido didn't say was that if Hatori had been fit to be in the position in which he was, he would have understood something as simple as this without having to ask for an explanation.

At 2:30 sharp, when Ooi was about to declare the meeting open again, someone knocked on the door. They all looked at each other as Reiji shot Shimura a victorious look. Not waiting for anyone's approval, Caterina walked in with the walk of a grown woman, confident, and in control of the situation.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen, Mr. Ooi," she nodded towards him while Ooi looked at Shimura. "According to the phone call I received from Mr. Shimura, we should discuss something in detail. Now, please don't misunderstand, I'm certain you already had and are still many other problems that should be debated, so I don't intend on staying too long."

Hatori was already on his feet, dragging a spare chair from one corner of the room. "Please, have a seat. Your name escapes me," he grinned. He was about to drag the chair to his side of the table, but Caterina stood between Ooi and Reiji.

"Here would be better. Thank you." Because she already thanked him, he had no right to argue – it would have been considered some desperate, unnecessary gesture. "Caterina Amadeo. Hopefully, we will meet again."

Takahashi Eiichi frowned. "How old is she, exactly? And how come she gets to assist and pick her place too?"

"The heir of the Asian branch general director," Ooi answered. He was clearly not pleased with having the girl there, but once he had agreed on it, he couldn't back away. "Back to what we were saying…"

Shimura nodded when he received the glance from Ooi. "The sales are dropping alarmingly fast because of Mr. Reiji's involvement in the recent slave labor scandal."

"And the murder investigation," Kyousuke Higuchi added.

"I hope there won't be any new scandal regarding a possible relationship with a minor," Kida Masahiko continued.

Caterina didn't seem uncomfortable, but rather amused. "That, sir, is an assumption that needs to be proved in front of the police before any such case is even considered for being open. The police don't deal with uncertainties, and neither should you. Returning to more relevant things, the case has been picked up by Mr. Koreyoshi Kitamura for its difficulty. The superintendent must have realized the gravity of the situation, so I believe it is safe to say the case will be closed soon."

"These are assumptions, though," Eiichi attacked. "Look who's making claims with no evidence now!"

Masahiko was watching her with doubt. "How would you know all this when Mr. Reiji does not?"

"He had no way of knowing. Mr. Kitamura picked up the case about an hour ago when you were in meeting. Because the lawyer could not reach him, he called me."

Namikawa nodded discreetly. She noticed, but so did Shimura. "If you don't mind, what exactly is your status? The two of you – are you related?"

"That depends on the criteria you choose. By blood, no, we are not. By interest, we definitely are. However, you should find my relationship to Mr. Ooi more interesting, if you prefer investigation in the private life of others." Caterina threw him a small, polite smile, but her green eyes were shining with fury.

"I am not interested in anything related to the private life of anyone," he defended himself, "unless aspects of this private life begin affecting the corporation."

She shrugged slightly. "I don't think you should be worried. Yes, the incomes are dropping this month, and probably during February as well, but the corporation is capable of surviving all this without external help."

Mido nodded. "True. We could keep the companies running as normal for nearly a year without any income. It's not a solution, but it is possible – theoretically speaking, of course."

To her, Mido looked very much like Light… It was almost disturbing. "Once the case is closed by the police and the real criminal is arrested, the image of the company will not only be washed clean, but also grow in popularity. The masses are always interested in such stories; which is great, because once someone is proven innocent, they feel guilty and tend to try and make up for it by preferring the brands of this corporation over others."

"How can you be so sure?" Higuchi asked. "These are all just assumptions."

Caterina smirked. "You are untrusting, it's understandable… Let's just say that I've seen similar situations before."

Eiichi began to laugh. "So a woman comes in, popping up out of nowhere, says we should rely on her experience, and do nothing?! Please… It's ridiculous! How many years of experience does she have? Twenty, at most? Including the year when she was born!"

The girl was eyeing him. She began taking the offenses personally and not even Reiji's glances could make her more calm. "Please give me your name, sir."

"And now she's demanding," he kept laughing. "Eiichi Takahashi – remember it."

The brighter of them watched both Eiichi and Caterina with interest. He couldn't say much with the files right in front of him, while the girl – although extremely young – was talking with her agenda closed. "Takahashi… perhaps it would be a better idea to leave your father dealing with the Yotsuba Homes What do you say? You've only got one brand under your direct administration and it somehow managed to be one of the most disastrous massive investments made last year. Ranked fifth from the bottom, it brought the corporation a total debt of over one million. It looks to me like you could benefit from a vacation. A permanent leave. You would have more time for surfing without the worry of missing any important calls, like you usually do."

With his eyes widened and his teeth clenched, the blond man stood up and slammed his hands on the table. "I won't tolerate this kind of attitude! You look like you could be my daughter!"

"That would be a shame. I assure you, if that would have been the case, you would retire this summer." Before he could continue the argument, she turned towards the rest of the men. "Now, if you need a detailed example of my experience – though I wouldn't call it mine – there are plenty to be discussed. Even my father had been involved in several cases of various crimes – from murder, to corruption. All of those were frauds, made up by his rivals in order to stain his image and lower his incomes. As soon as the police closed the case or the judge declared him innocent, his business flourished. Yet, just as a precaution and simply because I see that some of you are desperate to do something, I think it's a good moment to invest in publicity."

Namikawa decided to take over and keep leading the discussion away from the scandal or from Caterina's age. "There is a model willing to work for cheap as long as she receives a contract of several months."

"Cheap models don't usually do much," Higuchi commented. "We can't invest into a dumb model who can't act or some girl with an ugly face."

"I was talking about Misa Amane," Reiji continued. "She has a few successful campaigns from two years ago when she was first promoted by the designer Anastasia Rose. The only reason why she isn't currently posing for Vogue, for example, is that she lacks the financial support. It's only a matter of time until someone will notice her and promote her."

Mido wrote down the model's name on a corner of a paper. "It could be a good strategy, indeed… It would be even better if someone became her manager." He looked at Shimura.

"I suggest that we hire her for a month. If she has any results during this month, we can offer her a contract for a year."

Caterina stood up and took her agenda. "If you will excuse me, I believe we've clarified this issue."

"What? Are you in a hurry?" Higuchi mocked her. "Do you have something more important to do?"

"Actually, I do. I would have loved to stay a little longer, but there are a few problems with the European branch that need to be solved, one way or another. Despite some unnecessary offenses, it was a pleasure." Smiling the same way she did when they first noticed her, she made her way to the door. "Have a good day."

As soon as she was out, Caterina could hear them all talking, but the closed door stopped her from understanding their words. She called Yukimura immediately after and went to meet him. On her way there, she called the number that Rin sent her in a text, waiting for someone to pick up.

On another continent, near the border of a federation, a radio was playing Mexican music loud enough to be could be heard from outside. The cable was too short for the radio to ever sit on the windowsill, but its music could find the way out on its own.

The house was small, more of a cabin with a living room. Its hall and kitchen improvised into the same space, two bedrooms, and an outdoor toilet. The man was fixing the shower outside when he heard his phone ringing.

"Yao?!" he called. "Bring me the phone, will you?"

A Chinese boy ran back inside and returned with the phone. "The number is from Japan," he noticed by its prefix.

"Japan? How strange…" He took the phone and answered the call, waiting to hear a familiar voice.

 _'Hello?'_ a woman asked. _'Hello?'_ she insisted.

"Who is this?" he asked harshly. In the meantime, the boy sat underneath a tree and picked up the book he had been reading.

 _'King?'_ she asked, but it was too brief for the man to figure out whose voice it was. _'I need your help.'_

"…Kitten? How on earth did you get this number?" he frowned.

 _'That's a secret,'_ she joked. _'Listen. You will receive the details by email. The address is the date when we met for the first time and you had that child with you. The password is the number of marbles in two languages. We need to restart the Cold War – I'm sure you understand.'_

He leaned against the bath tub. "I was thinking of retiring, actually. Yao studies well. I want to adopt him and shape him a better future than this."

 _'Alright. But I really want you beside me right now. You were a great ally of Padre. You grew up in the association, right? What if I promise you a clean, safe job that will allow you to raise that child any way you want?'_

The King chuckled. "Kitten, you're not the owner of those affairs."

 _'I will be in summer. Until then, I can convince the administrator. Trust me. I owe you for everything you've done – I wouldn't dare think of letting you down.'_

After a moment of thought, he finally made up his mind. "Just this one time. After that, I'm going to retire, Kitten. Time's come for me to back away. I want to live my last years in peace and quiet. But just for one last time… What is it that you want me to do?"

 _'First, please come meet me. I'm also going to pay for your flight and the rent for the first month – just until all of the details start falling into place. I have my… issues with public communication services. I'm sure you know…'_

The King nodded, glad to have a chance to a normal life. He signaled for Yao to come closer as he covered the phone and grinned. "Pack your things. Don't forget your books and the summaries you made. We're going to move to Japan for now, and in a couple of months, we can go anywhere you want."

"And I can go to a real school? With uniforms and taxes?" The child quickly understood that the King didn't send him to a prestigious school because he couldn't afford it, so he began taking books from the library and writing summaries as he kept reading. This way, he could educate himself more.

"Yes! Now hurry." He uncovered the phone. "Kitten? Are you still there? When do we have to be at the airport?"

 _'Any time you want. I'm sending you five hundred to your bank account in a moment. Please call me once you've got your tickets.'_

Back in Japan, Caterina met with Yukimura to make sure that Kitamura would eventually close the case and declare Reiji innocent. After that, she went to a bank and sent the equivalent of five hundred dollars to the account number she had from Rin, an account that she guaranteed was used by the King. By the time she finally got home, Reiji did too.

Early the next morning, they both woke up and went on their ways – Namikawa had to give a statement for the police while Caterina went to the Yotsuba headquarters to talk to the head of personnel, Shimura.

Just then, Light was entering the exam room. It was a huge classroom with many candidates. It was absolutely full. There wasn't one seat empty.

 _'Wow, and to think this is only one of the three rooms… I wonder if the other two are just as big,'_ Ryuk said as he floated beside Light.

One of the supervisors indicated the seat he should take. Light then sat down and took his pen out of his jacket's pocket. He received the answer sheet, like everybody else, and shortly after, the exam questions. However, someone was warned to sit 'properly' and that caught his attention. When he looked back, Light saw an odd student just a few rows behind him with sickly, pale skin, wide eyes with dark circles underneath, bushy eyebrows, and messy black hair. The candidate was chewing the nail of his thumb and staring blankly ahead… or was he staring right at him? Light couldn't be sure.

However, he decided it would be best to ignore him and start working on the exam.

Caterina was just as nervous on the inside when Shimura kept staring at her. The man had those wide eyes ready to pop right out and a blank expression most of the time. All that topped with his black hair so rounded over the edges that it looked like some sort of bowl or helmet was enough to creep her out.

"Is it mandatory for her to come here personally? My mother worked with her before. Her stage name was Anastasia Rose, and as you know, she was promoting Misa at the time of her… Um…"

Shimura nodded, spearing her from finishing her phrase. "It is. I understand that you know her personal data, but it has to be her handwriting. It serves as a sample for comparison in case anyone tries to fake her signature in the future."

Caterina thought he was paranoid. Who would even think about faking the signature of a model? She wasn't a president or a director, so there was no way someone would risk prison time for that. "…Alright then. I'm going to call her here."

In the meantime, Light began feeling more and more uncomfortable. Whenever he threw a quick glance over his shoulder, he saw the same strange candidate staring at him. This couldn't be just his imagination – the guy sitting with his feet on the chair and hunched over his knees was spending more time staring at him than writing the exam.

After half an hour, the first few candidates turned their sheets in, then left. Some were relaxed, others seemed troubled or on the verge of tears. Light breathed, took a moment to calm down, then resumed his writing.

The longer that other student kept staring, the more it was giving him the creeps. After an hour, the students in between the two of them had left, leaving the other with a clear view of Light's back. It even crossed his mind that he could ask one of the supervisors to do something about this – either watch the odd one and force him to look down at his papers or just offer him a different seat. Light was willing to move as well – anything would have done, as long as he had a chance of leaving the visual area of the other.

 _'…Is he staring at you or at me?'_ Ryuk asked after an hour and half. _'I know he can't see me, but it kind of feels like he does.'_

Since both took their time, the two of them and a girl with dark, short hair had to remain in class until everyone was done writing or the time was up. Light was used to these kinds of security measures and it normally wouldn't have bothered him. He usually took all the time that he had on his hands to write an exam, then double-check everything just to be sure his paper would be perfect.

And yet, the time seemed to have slowed down. He didn't feel nearly as uncomfortable with security cameras and microphones all over his bedroom and his bathroom, but something about the other's intense glance made him feel uneasy. For a moment, a memory crossed his mind of how he took a live bug from the windowsill during one of the first classes of biology in middle school, trapped it in a glass container and placed the poor bug under a microscope. The only reason why he got away with that was because he knew absolutely everything the teacher tried to ask him for the rest of the year.

He went home after the exam. On his way, Light stopped to buy himself a cold can of soda, well aware that his brain was rare and brilliant. Alcohol, even drank occasionally and in small quantities, was dangerous for the nervous system, among others. Neurons seemed to 'commit suicide' after the consumption of alcohol – even from a single beer. All that made him keep drinking soda.

It wasn't the healthiest option because it made blood sugar levels go way over the normal values, but considering he was still stressed by that creep's stare, he decided it wouldn't be such a tragedy. In fact, it might be beneficial, to some degree – stress over lengthened periods of time would lower blood sugar concentration, which was also detrimental to his health.

He remembered his fascination in middle school when they first got to study the human brain. For a year or two, he wanted to become a neurologist. The thought brought a small smile on his lips even now, but he had a much more important mission.

 _'Hey, Light?'_ the shinigami drew his attention.

"Mm?" He looked both ways before crossing the street.

 _'Did you know that guy? The one who kept staring.'_

"I've never seen him in my life. I think I'd remember if we met – he's not exactly the most boring character. He stands out in the crowd… I doubt I'll forget about him anytime soon." Light passed by the boulevard that lead to the business quarter of the city where he usually went to meet with Caterina. For a few seconds, he felt a lump in his throat.

 _'Then what did he want with you?'_

"…I don't know, but you do have a point there," he mumbled. "I don't know him, but he could know me. It's a creepy and small possibility, but I must admit it's possible… Ryuk, if you want any apples during the next month, you're going to do what I say."

Ryuk widened his eyes, flying in front of him. _'What?! But… what did I do? I did everything you asked – I checked for cameras every single day! What more do you want?'_

Light stopped at a store to buy a few apples, choosing only the biggest and the reddest. When he walked out, Ryuk was already drooling. He held one apple in his hand so Ryuk could eat it and it would look normal. "Yes, you did what I asked – this is your payment right here. All this and a sincere thank you. But I want you to do more in order for me to provide you with more entertainment, and more apples, of course."

Ryuk devoured the apple and its core. _'You know, you haven't been so kind to me lately… Perhaps I will write your name in my Death Note.'_

"You wouldn't do that," he laughed. "You're enjoying this way too much."

 _'True…'_ the shinigami mumbled. He had to admit that Light was interesting.

Light kept feeding him one apple after another all the way back home. Ryuk devoured almost 2 kg of fruit in less than ten minutes, finally feeling full. "Ryuk… Find Caterina. Watch over her and make sure she doesn't see you. Find out what she's up to and where she gets her information. But Ryuk – don't let her see you! Be very careful – she doesn't have to know about this," he said just as he was nearing the door of his house. "I'm going to reward you when you return with something useful."

The shinigami left as soon as he received the order – because it did sound like an order to him, but he decided to let it slide. Light was offering more entertainment than any other human being could have offered him in a lifetime, and he also promised him apples – lots and lots of apples.

Ryuk found Caterina and Namikawa in the business quarter, driving a man and a boy to a five-star hotel. Her boyfriend was driving and Caterina was sitting in the front with him while the guests were sharing the back seat.

"It is a pleasure to meet you. I heard about your relationship with the Dragon," Namikawa said as he was parking the car. "Please, enjoy your stay."

"I'd like that, but I don't want any debts," the other man answered him. He looked a few years older, dressed in a flaming red shirt that made him stand out. "I'm only going to accept your help for now and only because Kitten insisted."

Caterina laughed. "You know, you don't have to call me that. And you wouldn't be in any kind of debt – it's me paying my debt to you. Feel free to ask for anything you need." Even if she was making the promise counting on Namikawa's money, it really didn't matter anymore. He gave her access to all of his resources, for which she will do the same once she will be given full control over her father's fortune. It was just a momentary situation, even it if looked unbalanced.

"Whatever you say, Kitten," the King smirked. "Tell us about the association. I'm sure Yao wants to hear about it as much as I do, right?"

The Chinese boy nodded vigorously. "Please! I want to know everything about it!"

They entered the elevator and took off to the eighth floor, where an apartment with two bedrooms had been rented in Namikawa's name. He let the King unlock the door himself.

"Padre created this non-profit association in order to offer orphans and poor children the chance for a better life. He picked many of them off the streets of Italy, in the beginning. It's called St. Nicholas and I intend on keeping its name. There are several orphanages in Italy, Ukraine, France, and the United States, and a few familial houses meant for those who are 18 years old, respectively 21 for the USA, and still studying. Anyone with a criminal record is kicked out – that includes everything, from drug possession, alcohol use, prostitution, stealth and so on to more serious crimes."

Yao was listening to Caterina and trying to maintain eye contact while the King was looking around the apartment. "What about school? Any rules about that?" the child asked.

"You must attend school – it's your choice which one. The association pays for everything you need, but you must have at least average results. If you're barely passing the year or repeating it, you will be sent to a psychologist for support and asked if you want to change your school. Are you an orphan, Yao?" she asked, watching the boy looking away.

"…Not exactly. Is it a problem if my parents are still alive?"

She looked over to the King for details. "You could say he ran away. He had his reasons."

Caterina nodded. "Then, you can declare that. Say the reason why you ran away and you will be considered an orphan in the papers with this mention. If your family tries to contact you in the future, you are under no obligation to return to them. You can decide if you want to keep in contact with your family or not."

"I don't," the boy replied briefly. "Actually, I don't ever want to see my father again."

His words hit her hard, but Caterina kept a small smile on her face. "I'm sure you've got your reasons. My father didn't want to see his either… He ran away, like you did, but he didn't have any support from anyone. He was all alone in the world… And he paid for that, in many ways."

Wrapping an arm around her shoulders, Namikawa held her closer to him. "It's just another reason to admire everything that he managed to create. He started lower than most people, but he became a legend."

The boy kept looking away, his dark eyes cold. "I won't waste your help, alright? Just trust me. I'll make it – and when I do, I won't forget about you. I don't believe in saints or religion, but as long as they don't force me to learn those stories, I'm going to use every form of help this association of yours is willing to offer."

The King smirked. "He's already sure the world doesn't have any gods or saints," he said with a hint of amusement. "Don't mind Yao. He sometimes says some disturbing things, but that's not what he means. He's just very open and honest about his opinions."

"That's great," Caterina said. "He's going to fit right in, I'm sure. Also, I was thinking about opening a house here in Japan. What do you think? It would be done in less than a yea with an orphanage and three or four familial houses."

Yao refused to go with the King just yet. "What are those? Do we get to live with a family?"

"No, it's different from that. You can live there for as long as you're a student, with three or five others close to your age and who you know from the orphanage. Many buy themselves apartments when they move out or marry and make their own family right away. Some keep living there until they get their master's degree, working and saving money. All you have to pay is the utilities – you know, water, electricity, and so on. You pay for one part of every bill, either a quarter or the sixth part. There are two or three rooms at the top floor with two bathrooms, a kitchen, and a living room at the ground floor."

The boy nodded, finally going with the King to choose the room he liked best. He kept holding a bag that seemed a little too heavy for him until he finally took it into one of the bedrooms.

"What is he carrying in that bag, if I'm not being indecent?" Namikawa asked the King.

"Summaries. I couldn't buy him books, so I got him empty notebooks and I told him to borrow books from the library or from his friends. He writes summaries of those books he reads so he can go over the information again. It's his own library, in a way…" he laughed. "It's too much of an effort, if you ask me, but he loves his collection of summaries."

Caterina looked after Yao for a long time. "…Maybe it would be better to send him to that orphanage for gifted children from the UK. What was it called? Warner? Wesley? Something…"

"Never heard of it," the King shrugged. "He's a smart kid. He studies on his own and beats his teachers in arguments during classes. I think he'll be fine wherever we send him, as long as it offers him something to learn. The kid is the happiest when he studies." The man began to laugh. "I don't even understand half of what he says he likes."

Both Reiji and Caterina smiled in amusement. "I think it's a good idea to bring the association in Japan. I'm going to speak to my father about a donation that will cover the expenses for that."

She nodded. "Alright. Well, we're going to let you rest for now. Please call me when you wake up tomorrow, King."

The man smiled widely. "Sure will. Have fun, you two!"

Ryuk watched them from afar, staying behind Caterina and making no sound. He followed the two outside and then looked after the car as the man drove away to the rich side of the city, with many residential areas and luxurious cars parked in the front yard in order to let the neighbors know where they were. That was the pretty side of Tokyo, with houses owned by important people and private security companies patrolling side to side with the police in order to assure the safety of the inhabitants.

He was surprised to see that Caterina had switched the ripped jeans for dress pants and the platform sandals with thin heels that looked painful even to the god of death. He watched her undoing two buttons of her dress shirt as she walked straight to the kitchen, complaining about the warmth in the house.

"Didn't you open a window, Rin?" she asked, pouring herself a glass of water. "The air is too stuffy. And why is it so hot in here?"

"I was cold when I walked out of the shower," the Japanese girl said without even looking up from her laptop. She was playing a game, pressing buttons on the keyboard without looking and watching a character on the screen as it climbed and jumped between hyper-realistic ruins, fighting giant spiders and panthers.

"You turned up the heat? All you had to do was put on a pair of pants and wrap your hair in a towel. Of course you're going to feel cold if you walk around with your hair wet." Caterina sighed, turned the heat down, and then opened a window. "Pause the game and go dry your hair. Rin? I'll put a password on the Wi-Fi."

The girl paused the game immediately. "Alright, alright, jeez…" She dragged her feet upstairs and went to dry her hair in the bathroom.

Namikawa heard the talk between the two and sighed, shaking his head. "Maybe it would be better to have her joining the association as well, just to avoid another possible scandal."

She nodded. "Perhaps… I'm going to talk to Ooi about it tomorrow."

"He is leaving to meet with members of the European branch tomorrow morning. I think his flight is at 10 am, but if you want, I can check."

Caterina leaned against the wall, sipping from her water. "No… It's alright. I'll call him when I wake up. If he's on the plane, he won't answer, but otherwise, I'm sure he will. Ooi doesn't have this number I'm using now, so he won't know who is calling him. Once he picks up, I'm going to ask him to invest the donation made by your father into a new St. Nicholas complex somewhere near Tokyo."

Namikawa nodded. He unbuttoned his shirt at the neck and loosened his tie just as Rin was dragging her feet back down. The girl had also put on a pair of shorts. "Rin, did you manage to find anything new today?"

"Uh… no, not really. I played this new game and it's fantastic, but I guess you wouldn't understand." Her enthusiasm was draining fast as Namikawa frowned. "I'll look after I finish this stage, alright?"

"Rin, do you know what time it is?" Caterina asked her. "It's almost midnight. It was two hours ago when we were at the airport and I called and asked you to check if there were any new threats coming from the Russian mafia, especially through those three reporters you found earlier. You said you would look it up in five minutes then."

"Well, I didn't notice it, alright?!" Rin crossed her hands over her chest. "All I ask is that you let me finish this one stage – that's all, I promise!"

Reiji sighed. "It's alright. Caterina, do you want to come upstairs?" He was tired, having been up from earlier than any of the girls. "Rin can leave us a note for tomorrow morning."

Caterina nodded. "Then, finish this stage and the whole game, or whatever. If you find anything, write it down and leave it on the table." She followed the man upstairs and into his bedroom, where they both changed and went to bed.

As soon as she saw herself alone, Rin closed the window in the living room and turned the heat back up. She threw her shorts on the other couch and went to the kitchen for a cup of coffee with a generous spoon of ice cream on top. She lit a cigarette there and smoked it quickly, then closed the door to the kitchen, leaving that window wide open. Rin went back to her seat, put on her headphones, and resumed the game. Out of curiosity, Ryuk stayed behind her to watch - it was so very interesting!

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock,** my faithful beta! _

_If you haven't already, check out the guidebook for this story at /s/12600457/1/Gospel-for-the-Wicked-Guidebook fore more details about the OCs and other original content added._

 _As for the Yandere Simulator names, it must be a coincidence. I looked it up and it seems to be a game with many characters and more to be added, but I haven't heard of it until now. However, my inspiration when creating a character, references that I tried to make obvious (but may not have been so) and other aspects are explained in character sheets, so I encourage you to browse through the guidebook. I'm going to add a lot more to it as soon as it's polished and proofread._


	50. XLIX - Goodbye for Now

_XLIX – Goodbye for Now_

* * *

The next day, after negotiating with Ooi while soaking in the bath tub, Caterina got dressed and went to eat lunch with the King and Yao. She used the occasion to present him the whole situation in which both of them were in, including the murder.

"Wait up… So when your dad wanted you to marry him, you rejected him. Then you ran away from this Ooi guy to him, and now you helped him get away with murder? So you're partners in crime, basically?"

Caterina bit her lower lip. "…Sort of, yes. More than just that, actually. He's not that bad, after you get to know him."

The man shrugged. "He looks like every other rich kid I've seen before – a spoiled bastard who thinks the universe owes him everything and who probably can afford it, too."

"That was exactly my opinion when I first saw him. But he's got his feet on the ground. There are a few reasons why Padre liked him, more than just his family history and his fortune. By the way – he's building his own fortune these years, completely independent from his father." She realized when the King raised a suspicious eyebrow that she sounded a little too proud about it.

"Are you sure it's just business and interest?"

"Of course!" Caterina answered him quickly, even if her face was saying the opposite. "I don't just fall in love with anyone smiling at me."

"Seems to me like he did more than smile…" the King continued with his idea, "He helped you when you needed it, he picked up your problems and made them his own, offered you stability and protection – that's quite a lot. And he doesn't look bad. You've got no reason to not get real with this relationship, unless… he's violent, of course, or he belittles you."

"That's not the case. But back to the real problem here… What do you think?"

The King sighed heavily. "That could get very complicated… First, ask yourself who would win if this Reiji guy gets ruined, 'cause that's what it looks like to me. Someone is trying to ruin him. They're trying to mess up his career, his public image, his relationship to you – interest-based or not."

"That's easy. The Russians are clearly gaining an economic advantage on both continents, disturbing the balance of the corporation with such a monstrous scandal, which means that the European and the American branches will have to limit their investments and start supporting the Asian branch financially."

The man leaned with his elbow on the table, resting his head on his fist. "Yeah, that too… Anyone interested in ruining Reiji that would take it personally?"

"Personally…?" Caterina repeated for herself. "My ex, maybe? But Light wouldn't go this far. Would he? No… He wouldn't ever work with a criminal – he despises them." She could use a second opinion on this.

"The cop's kid, right? The guy your dad didn't like…" the King waited for her approval. "You know him better than me, so you tell me. If the Russians tracked him down through you and offered him money for information, do you think he'd turn them down? Maybe he thinks that by ruining this Reiji guy and sending him in jail, you two could get back together. A high school student doesn't really compare to a businessman, right? No matter how brilliant."

She looked down. "So Light could see him as competition… But when… 'Victor' offered him the chance to leave with me and 40% of the fortune that Padre left me, he denied. The Light I know would always deny an offer from a criminal."

"Even if it means he can get you, the whole fortune and some extra cash? …I wouldn't be so sure. Every man has a price, Kitten." The King saw the food being brought to their table. "Yao, put down the book. You'll keep reading after we eat."

"Alright," the boy said as he closed the book and placed it on the table by his side.

Caterina sighed as the plates were being set in front of them. She nodded towards the waiter in thanks then began picking at her food. "I don't know… I don't want to believe that Light would actually shake hands with a criminal."

Ryuk had to admit that Light surprised him as well with that bold move, but he had to remember to keep quiet. He was floating behind Caterina, watching the three of them.

"I still don't know how you found out my phone number and bank account," the King changed the topic of their discussion.

Caterina smiled a little. "I didn't find them - Rin did. 'Victor' had some… peculiarities, so to say…" When the man nodded, she went on. "We stumbled over her while negotiating with 'Victor' the terms of our former alliance, or however you want to call it." Caterina eventually began to eat. "She's in middle school, decided to drop out because school doesn't fit her needs, a smoker and she somehow knows how to contact drug addicts and vandals in any area close to Tokyo."

The man raised an eyebrow. "Kitten, are you sure she's not secretly a demon?"

Caterina began laughing out loud when she heard him. "Positive! I'm not sure I want to know how or why she knows all this, but the girl is great with computers. She only needs a laptop and a stable internet connection to find absolutely anything, from any side of the world. It's amazing what she's capable of doing… when she's not wasting the days and the nights away playing video games, that is."

"Then, she must be a genius," the King concluded.

"Something like that, yes, with a very strange past." Caterina kept eating, just like the other two at her table. "By the way, I haven't asked… What have you been doing in the US?"

"Oh, not much… I stayed out of trouble and made enough money to live decently, right, Yao?" The man grinned at his companion, who nodded quietly.

Later that day, when Light went out supposedly to meet with _'a friend'_ , he stumbled over someone he thought dead. That wasn't part of his plan – it was merely an accident. He had seen the White Elephant tea house being rebuilt and the memories of Caterina had eventually taken over him, making him long for the calm, intimate atmosphere there.

At the corner of a street, calling him from the shade of an alley, a man was reaching out his hand. "Light? Yagami Light, is that you?!"

Surprised, he stopped for a moment to look at the homeless man there. He had a short beard and messy hair, oily from dirt. He had both of his legs broken, stretched out on some improvised wheelchair – a wooden platform wide enough for him to sit and long enough for his legs, suspended on a couple skateboard wheels of different ages and colors. He was using a thin blanket to cover his legs and was wearing an old and dirty ski jacket. Light backed away when the man tried to come closer.

"Light, don't you recognize me? I'm Vitto – you've got to remember me."

Shock paralyzed him for a moment as Kira kept looking at the man, trying to find a resemblance. He was much thinner than Vitto, but had the same dark eyes and the same mad desire to live that would have made him dance in front of his enemies only a few months ago. "…Vitto?!"

"Yes! Come closer, I want to talk to you. Please!" The man used his hands to move the platform back into the shade. "I'm not proud of how low I've fallen, but I survived, and that's all that matters. I want to get back at Reiji for everything he's done to me."

Immediately, Light got an idea. He followed Vitto into the alley, away from curious eyes. "Everyone thinks that you're dead. We need the body of an immigrant to be found, one dying the same way you almost did. I've taken care that the police will pick up the case, and so, Reiji will be sent to jail in no time. Either that, or his image will be forever compromised – that's the best case scenario for him."

Vitto's eyes widened. "Then, I need to fake my own death…"

"Yes. And it must be with the remains of an immigrant. He's in a slave labor scandal right now. How everything happened doesn't concern you. You either play dead, place the remains of another at the crime scene or near and get a new identity, or you can come out and confess about everything, become part of a witness protection program, sue him, send Reiji to jail and receive money as compensation."

Vitto thought for a moment. "Ross and Frost might come for me if I come to the surface…"

"It's your choice. If you agree to faking the murder, you're on your own, but if you want to sue him, I know the people you should talk to in order to succeed. He won't be accused of murder, but of torture and premeditated murder attempt." A perverted smirk was twisting Light's face as he imagined both scenarios. Either way, he would be safe from any possible consequences while Namikawa Reiji would find himself in boiling hot water. It was the perfect move to make in order to prove to Caterina he had what it took to rule the world – with or without her money.

"Do you say the witness protection program could assure my safety in case Ross or Frost try to take me out?"

Light nodded. "They will offer you lifelong protection and security, or until you ask for it to stop. Our country's system is one of the best in the world, way above average and constantly improving. You're going to be alright." Of course, Light knew there were many flaws in the system – flaws related to human weakness and the possibility of corruption appearing anywhere, anytime, but it was to his advantage if Vitto confessed.

"Then, I will. I'm going to hide my other ID, just in case, and then confess."

Kira nodded. "Before that though… can you please give me your name? Your real name?"

"Vicenzo Vargas. Thank you, Light. I've never doubted you."

Light turned to leave. "I thank you, Vicenzo… For trusting me." He kept walking towards the tea house where he ordered Caterina's favorite infusion just for the sake of feeling the scent of grapes and citrus surrounding him again… Him, and his memory of her.

For the following month, Light kept hearing from Ryuk whenever Caterina did something, but not much happened. He learned about the Non-Profit Association of St. Nicholas for Children and Students, about Misa Amane working for various brands of the Yotsuba corporation, about Mr. Ooi naming the King director of the future complex and about the project, but it didn't change much.

He knew that Caterina would keep busy in order to avoid thinking of unnecessary things, which nowadays, probably meant him. Kira kept killing criminals and failed to contact Rin. He had Ryuk's confirmation that both Caterina and Namikawa knew about his attempt. Vitto also kept trying to reach him, but something stopped him from going further…

Instead, he kept visiting the White Elephant tea house and ordering the same infusion, sitting at the same long table that overlooked the street, staring at the people passing by.

 _'Light? What's up? Why did you ask me to follow Caterina around?'_ Ryuk asked one evening towards the end of February.

"Because I thought she'd try to come after me… You said she realized I helped Frost with the murder case and the slave scandal. Yet, she keeps battling him – not me. She didn't contact me, even if she did recognize my genius move. She did nothing about it…" Light poured himself the infused tea and watched it darkening in color as its level kept rising in the cup. "It's… irritating. What do I need to do to draw her attention?"

Ryuk floated in front of him and lowered himself in the air so he could force a short and tense eye contact. _'You mean I've been watching over her because you're obsessed with her?'_

"I'm not obsessed," he frowned. "I just… expected her to make some other move. I'm growing so tired! She keeps herself busy all day with meetings, with trials, with the business she doesn't even own yet! It's infuriating."

 _'Almost like she forgot all about you, and you should move on…'_

Light let out a heavy sigh. "It simply means that I need to do something more impressive, something… worthy of her attention." He turned his eyes towards the Death Note. On impulse, he picked it up, opened it, turned the pages full of criminals until he reached a clean page, picked up the pen, and then… he stopped. Light began playing with the pen, fidgeting.

 _'Are you going to write her name down?'_ Ryuk was starting to grow impatient.

But Kira didn't answer him. In truth, he would have killed her many times until then, but it was Light who kept stopping Kira's hand. Even if his voice barely surfaced anymore, Kira still couldn't bring himself to kill his girl… Because Caterina was his girl still, and she always will be. For Kira, she was a challenge that got him so mad sometimes, demanding him to try even harder than he did the previous time. His need for a reward after every attempt was frustrating him further.

Kira eventually began to write: _'Vicenzo Vargas – March 12th, 11:50 PM, suicide.'_ He continued with the details of his death, writing line after line with the fury boiling inside him. In the end, his pen had cut through the paper and he only then realized how he has been pressing the pen down into the notebook's page. His fingers hurt and his wrist ached. His handwriting looked strange, much larger and sloppier than usual. And yet, as he sipped Caterina's favorite tea, he felt a sense of relief.

When the shinigami tried to read it, Light snapped the notebook closed. "You'll see."

 _'Oh? Why, is it some sort of surprise?'_

He sighed, enjoying the aroma of the tea and thinking of how Caterina would play with her nails around the edges of the cup. He could almost imagine her there, trying to steal away his cup. "You're going to think that I'm crazy for this. You wouldn't understand the genius of my move, but she will – and she is going to appreciate it."

 _'What on earth are you trying to do?'_ the shinigami asked once again.

"You'll see…" Light kept sipping from the tea, refilling his cup until it was all gone. He went to the bathroom, then sat back and counted the cash he had on him. He still had enough for another order, and there was one hour left until the tea house would close. Sighing, Light put back his wallet in his bag that he only carried around these days so he could have some coverage for the Death Note. "Well…? Aren't you going to tell me anything?" he asked Ryuk. "You're usually very interested in small talk."

 _'I think it might be time for me to… you know, spy on other people.'_ The shinigami immediately remembered Rin and her games. With a little bit of luck, he was going to find her playing again. He loved her and her strangely realistic video games.

Light looked back and saw a young woman at the bar. She was playing with her high heels on the support pole of the chair, releasing her hair from a neat bun into a wild mane of curls in the shade of sour cherry juice. She ran a hand through her hair, placing her order and joking with the barman, but then she leaned with her head against her hand.

He couldn't believe his eyes. Could she really be there, at that hour, all by herself? But no matter how low the probability, there had to be a reason why Ryuk just abandoned him. Ryuk had the advantage of recognizing people by their real name if he saw even part of their face. If he saw Caterina's name above her head, that would explain why he was in such a rush to disappear.

Standing up, he gathered his things and went to sit by her side. He didn't look at her first, simply waiting for the barman to pay him some attention – even if the man was busy with her order.

"…Light?!" she eventually asked.

At that moment, he knew he was right. Turning towards her with a bitter half smile, he shrugged. "Who else would dare to sit next to you when you're all dressed up and alone?"

She chuckled. "Are you less of a hypocrite now?"

"I've got no idea what you're talking about." He watched her black and red nails playing on the tabletop. "Of course, I have my flaws – and I've been working on them. I should thank you, really. Although, I wouldn't advise you to do that again. I needed someone to smack some sense into me. Like you said, all the power and all of those complications…"

"I'm glad to hear that. With this attitude, we might work together again, at some moment in time." Caterina received her cocktail and sipped from it.

Light smirked. "Correct me if I'm wrong, but you shouldn't be buying or consuming something like that yet."

"I need it, though. Besides, I look old enough." She sipped some of her drink.

"Because you dress the way you do and wear that dark makeup. How do you call it? Smoke eyes?"

"Smokey. It's a trend that helps me hide how tired I am. I've adapted it to the cat eye… But it's not that dark – you're just teasing."

Light watched her for a moment, trying to understand if her words made him feel sad or glad. "Are there any problems, my dear? In your new found paradise?"

"Lots of them. And if I want to keep up everything Padre had built over the years, I have to reign over hell. So, you see, I won't be visiting any paradise… at least for a couple of years." She sighed, playing with the straw between the three ice cubes in her glass. "Where should I even begin? I've no idea…" Caterina chuckled, then threw him a cold look. "Perhaps it should be you who begins?"

"Where do you want me to begin? I'll gladly accept." Light skimmed the menu, but decided to stick to tea.

"Talking about my problems, for example. I already know you're trying to throw Reiji into jail."

He tried to look innocent, but began laughing midway. "Please! Me?! Why should I even bother with him? You didn't call him yours, didn't call him a lover, a man, or whatever. The only thing keeping you by his side is money, which is fine by me."

"Is it? What if I told you that I slept with him?" Caterina looked at him through a few strands of her hair, trying to catch him truest, purest expression.

Light already knew, so he didn't look surprised. Instead, Caterina saw a sense of anger and unbearable sadness overcoming him. "Ryuk told me. I suppose we all have our needs… Just the way I used Midori, the girl you saw by my side. Pretty average, annoying when she opens her mouth and a bit whiney, but she clung to me like her life depended on it. Funny – she had no idea how right she was."

"I thought you would have stopped playing god by now. Rin showed me the footage of the security cameras here, but hopefully, she didn't guess why…"

It was easy to understand that Rin was probably the hacker's nickname. "So you dressed up for me?"

Caterina began to laugh a little. "Darling, don't be ridiculous – I have an image to keep. But in truth, I was hoping to find you here. It confirms that you've missed me, and the moment you sat by my side, I knew…" she sipped some more of her drink, "You still love me."

Caught up trying to pretend the opposite, he eventually shrugged. "I won't wait forever, though. It really doesn't matter anymore, but it could…"

She sighed, leaning with her head against her hand again. "Yes, it could… Do you plan on killing him? Reiji – do you want him dead after this humiliating scandal?"

He shook his head. "Of course not. Why would I? You know, I'd sleep much better at night if I knew him raped several times a day and beaten to a pulp, rotting in some filthy jail for a few years. With some luck, he may catch some diseases too, break a few bones, and give up his prince charming allure. It would be a much better move – a check mate, I hope."

She rolled her eyes. "You have no idea how to break someone… Besides, he's got a great lawyer."

"I may kill him, though. He's simply in my way – no other reason." Kira had received the tea pot a few minutes ago, but he had let it sit. He poured himself a cup and Caterina could taste its flavor in the air. Light noticed and smiled. "Do you remember?"

"Yes… There was a shooting here, the last time we came. How sad…"

"Is that all that you remember out of my heroic performance?" Light was joking, but the main idea was true.

"I remember that it was the beginning of a rollercoaster of small disasters that led to the death of a student who was brilliant, funny, hard-working and taking care of two children by himself. I can't remember his name, though…" Caterina felt a tear in the corner of her right eye, but she blinked it away. "I also remember that Padre couldn't talk much sense to your father at the section."

"My father works by a strict set of rules. He couldn't just open a protection program based on your father's words. But what matters more than that is that we're alive."

She shot him a cold look. "Not all of us."

"That's not my fault, Caterina…"

"Not necessarily yours alone. You see, I often think about this – if we would have been offered protection, perhaps things would have turned out to be different. We were clearly being threatened during the last month… And very often. I've told you on a few occasions, but you didn't do anything about it. Sometimes I think you might have even… waited for something like that to happen." Caterina sighed, letting her smirk fade.

He reached for her hand, but received a sudden eye contact instead. She looked empty, drowned in nothing but numbed pain. "That wasn't my intention. There was nothing I could have done, and you know it. The police can't operate so quickly, they just… They have to wait for something to happen and then catch the killer."

"After someone's been killed. Is that it?"

"Sadly, it is… That's why I don't support the system. Too much paperwork, too many complicated procedures… too much time wasted. Take any criminal you want – it's always the same. They let them kill several people, gathering clues and trying to understand the criminal's mind. That much is impossible and really unnecessary. No one is going to write a book on the Snake, or Beyond Birthday, or any other."

Caterina sipped some more of her drink, playing with the straw between her lips and her fingers. "Light… shut up. How do you even dare talk this way about criminals? Have you forgotten your favorite pastime?"

"It's not a pastime – it's my duty."

She rolled her eyes. "Do you still believe that?"

"Of course! I'm the only one who can do it – but I want you by my side. For the last time, I want to ask you to come back to me." He took her hand and kissed it. "Cat, come on… You know we're perfect for each other. I need you to show me what I can't see, to read the signs that I can't even notice. Without you, I feel like a blind man – the first step I take out of my familiar surroundings could be into a trap."

Sighing, Caterina looked towards the open window wall. "Light, my hands are stained. I've got blood on my hands, that's why I don't want to touch that Note ever again. I've seen death in such detail, it's haunting."

"You don't have to see it up close ever again. You said it yourself – some things are necessary in order for us to remain at the top." Light placed her hand over the cheek that she had turned red with her goodbye. "Some have to fall – so what? They're evil people that would have slaughtered one another anyway, eventually."

Caterina slipped her hand away from him and cooled it on her glass. "Alright. Here's what bothers me the most right now. First, there's Reiji's scandal and his career that might end any moment now. Second, Frost is threatening the European branch – the one that Padre created and the one I'm going to own completely in just a few months. Also, Ross seems to have some personal obsession with trying to get me, and some of the people running the Asian branch are complete morons. The lawyer is a crook asking for more money every day, even when he doesn't do anything – he just has to ask someone to do something for him. There are also some fake news claiming that Reiji would be a pedophile – how absurd!"

Light wanted to pass a joke on how she was still a few months too young, but decided it wasn't the right time for that. "I may be able to help you with the first two. But before, you're going to have to trust me…"

"What do you mean?" Caterina turned towards him completely.

At that moment, he noticed her incredibly thin waist and her narrow hips. Even Midori had wider curves… How odd. It wasn't the way he remembered her. No, Light remembered grabbing her hips and kissing her stomach. It was flat and hard with fiber, but not excessively thin. "You know what I mean. Cat… are you on a diet?"

"How are you going to kill someone if you don't know his name?" she asked instead.

"That's my problem. Don't avoid the question – are you trying to look like a skeleton? Caterina…" He watched her turning away from him. "Did he ask you to do this?"

"What?! No! Leave him out of this," she snapped. "Namikawa never said anything about my appearance. Whatever I do, I do it for myself." Caterina sighed. "I did lose some weight, but not too much. Just let me be."

His hands went up into the air, as if he was trying to defend himself in front of a gun loaded with anger. "Alright… I guess I can't tell you what to do, but… Try not to take it too far. You're thin enough already, and you're beautiful. You're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. I'm… I'm looking for you in others and they're always so pathetic the moment I start comparing them to you. Midori was a good girl, it's why I didn't kill her, but I couldn't stand that she didn't even come close to your imagination. She wasn't smart enough, she didn't look at the world in the same way, she didn't judge people as weak or powerful by their coffee of choice…"

Caterina rolled her eyes as Light chuckled and stared at the tea in his cup, almost cold now and leaving a line of color on the walls of the cup. "You're just saying it so that I'll fall even deeper for you and go back to being broke and the girlfriend your father never liked."

"He never told you anything," he pointed it out.

A bitter smile showed on her face. "Of course – he's too polite for that. But I've seen it when he looked at me that night, at the police section. He blamed me for the incident. You nearly died and he was convinced that I'm that terrible influence that nearly got you killed."

"Except, I asked you to be that terrible influence," he chuckled. "Whatever he thinks, I can make my own decisions."

Caterina turned towards her watered down drink and took another sip, then held her forehead with one hand. "Don't make this any harder, Light. Just stop… Alright? I can't just leave Namikawa after everything he's done for me. I can't break his heart just like that. He took me in when no one would, supported me, gave me everything he has. He always does everything in his power to get on my good side and he's trying so hard, it's painful. I can't just drop the bomb. What do I tell him? That I still love you and that I'm thinking of you when I'm with him? I can't. I won't…"

After a long moment of silence, Light eventually talked. "There's one way to fix this…"

"Don't you even think about it. Or if you do, kill me too."

He frowned. "I can't… Do you think I haven't thought of it before? Countless times! I can't. I just…" Light sighed heavily. "I hate to know that bastard puts his hands on you and that you help him cover up his tracks and advise him. That should be me! That should be me in your bed and in your head every single moment, not him. I'd rather kill him than you, but you wouldn't forgive me for that. The only thing I don't understand is why…"

"He's everything I saw in you, and everything you weren't. That's why…" Caterina finished her drink. The last few sips were just a layer of melted ice with a vague flavor of her drink.

Light forced her to look towards him and kissed her deeply. How did they even come to this? They were both angry at each other for crimes none of them meant to commit against the other. They were throwing knives at each other's heart, both praying to miss. He held her closer as she wrapped one arm around his shoulders, scratching his scalp with her nails and returning his passion.

"…I can't. I have to go, Light. He should be home any moment now and I don't want to get home after he does." Caterina turned away from him and paid for her drink. The barman has been on his phone in a corner, in the back. He could see them from there, but he couldn't hear their conversation. He only stood up when Caterina placed the money on the counter. "I don't care if you understand or not, but I have to go."

"Let me walk you there, at least for a few minutes. It's dark outside, you wouldn't be safe." He stood up as she threw her coat over her shoulders and grabbed her handbag.

"I have a driver. I'm sorry… but for now, it's goodbye." Avoiding his eyes, Caterina walked past him and left. She didn't look back. Instead, she checked her lipstick in a pocket mirror right before going down the stairs and out of his sight.

Left behind, Light paid attention to the music for the first time that evening. He was the last client left and the barman was shamelessly cleaning the bar, waiting for him to leave. _'Do you miss me like I miss you?'_ it played, _'Fucked around and got attached to you. Friends can break your heart too, and I'm always tired, but never of you.'_

Those lines brought a bitter smile to his lips. He sighed heavily and paid for the tea. _'Uh-oh, keep it on the low – you're still in love with me, but your friends don't know. If you wanted me, then just say so, and if I were you I would never let me go.'_

"Trouble with your girl…?" the barman asked. He was wearing his hair short, with straight bangs swapped to the side and aligned to such a sharp line, it made Light think he might have had it cut by a sword.

He nodded briefly. Naturally, his next question was "Why didn't you go after her?" to which Light had no answer.

"I… couldn't. I offered, but she pushed me away, again…" He sighed, resting his elbows on the bar and sitting back down.

The barman shrugged. "Didn't look that way from where I've been standing, but whatever you say. So, is that all? Are you sure you don't want to order anything else?"

"As much as it pains me, I won't. I can't." Light kept thinking about the words chosen by the author of his biology book, a well known professor teaching medicine students. Neurons ' _seem to commit suicide_ ' on alcohol… "Sorry to keep you so late." Light stood up again and left.

The barman shrugged. He took the money that his client left him and went to the door to turn the ' _Open_ ' sign around. The White Elephant was now closed.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock,** as usual._

 _I'm glad to see that someone pays attention to supporting characters like the King. He may play a more important role towards the climax of the... Detective L Arc, I suppose I can call it. You know, when in the canon series of events Light becomes himself again and there's the helicopter chase scene where Light and L seem like good friends. However, that's just a thought._

 _On another note, I'm working on a new character meant to twist everything even more. It's going to be one of the few powerful female characters in the story and you will most likely find her 'type' among those promoted by the media._

 _Also - heads up for side characters! Vitto will be very busy during these last two weeks of his life. I've just returned from a week long vacation and I have some ideas into a notebook._


	51. L - BFF's

_L – B.F.F.'s_

* * *

On the second day of February, Misa went to the Yotsuba headquarters for a photoshoot. She was surprised to find a few girl talking to Suguru Shimura, the vice president that kept an eye on everyone and personally interviewed every new employee. The blonde approached them cautiously, wondering if she was interrupting anything or not. She couldn't help but scan the other girl from head to toe.

The new girl had bleached out platinum blonde hair that was straighter than a string in tension, shining with an apparent softness that Misa always associated with magazines and edited photographs. It was flowing down to the girl's waist, tied up in a voluminous ponytail that looked so natural, but was most likely the result of layered extensions of natural hair. Her black coat was made of a fur so pretty, Misa wanted to touch it and see if it was for real. After all, real fur was extremely expensive and even forbidden in some parts of the world. She saw the girl's cigarette pant with a clearly ironed line stopping right above the edge of a pair of shining black ankle boots. She spotted a watch with a bunch of tiny sparklers inside that Misa couldn't see very well. Were those diamonds?

As she got closer, Misa recognized the red sole of the stranger's boots and she began hyperventilating. She had to bite her lower lip and mess up her hot pink lipstick just to hold back from squealing in delight and jealousy.

Shimura looked past the new model and saw Misa acting a little strange. She was clutching her red purse so tightly, her fingers turning even paler than they usually were. "Good morning, Misa. Are you alright?"

The blonde could only nod. She pointed towards the stranger's boots with a trembling hand. "Those are…!"

"From Christian Louboutin's latest collection? Precisely," the other girl turned around to reveal a romantic Valentino vaporous shirt that contrasted with her porcelain skin and showed a bra in the palest shade of nude.

All this time, Shimura became more and more confused. "If any of you would care to explain, please, be my guest."

The stranger held out her hand adorned with matte black acrylic nails and a single silver ring lacing up around her index finger. "I'm Yulia. You must be Misa – I'm so glad to meet you. We'll be shooting together for Yothuba Homes this week, if I understood correctly…"

Misa shook her hand slowly, trying to comprehend what was happening. "We're… shooting together?"

"I tried to call and tell you, but you didn't pick up!" Shimura quickly attacked her. "In lack of a clear answer, I interpreted your complete lack of interest as a silent agreement. When you can't be reached to state your opinion, others are entitled to decide for you. It's on page 6 of your contract, second paragraph-!"

"It's so perfect!" Misa chuckled. "You look so good! And so thin – that's very chic. And Valentino? I can't wait to afford it! Misa has been posing for years, but my first promoter had a tragic accident on a yacht and her daughter is pretty hard to convince. She doesn't like Misa very much."

Yulia smiled in amusement, bearing a set of perfectly aligned pearly whites. "How old is she?"

"She's… 18, I think? Misa didn't ask!" she began to laugh in hopes Yulia will let it slip. "Misa is 19 though."

"We've still got a whole career in front of us. Believe me or not, this is my first real job as a model," she chuckled.

"No…!" Misa's brown eyes widened as Yulia rolled her blue ones.

"Yes! Well, my daddy is an engineer and now he's a corporate director too, so he doesn't want his baby girl posing for magazines and having all those nasty men drooling all over the page. But he agreed with this one, since it's for a real estate company."

That explained the boots and the shirt and the watch… Misa scanned her again with a hint of regret and jealousy. Why did some girls get the full pack by mere luck, while she had to chase contracts and do her very best-est every single time? "Life is so unfair sometimes…"

"I know, right? I could have started my career as a model way earlier, when I was 14 or so. I would have been a supermodel by now. But I'm already 20 this month, so… you know, I'll try to do what I can for the next five years."

Shimura cough in his fist. "Girls, if you don't mind… There will be a car waiting for you outside in a few minutes. I'll have your contract ready tonight, Yulia. Thank you for providing us with all of the information we need. I expect professional results."

"I'll try my best!" Yulia promised with a wide and almost childish smile that fit her so well…

"Let's go for some coffee while we wait," Misa suggested. She already felt Yulia overshadowing her.

"Coffee stains the teeth. Let's go after the photo shoot, what do you say?" Yulia smiled softly towards her new friend. "Who knows? Maybe we could be friends. You know, it's pretty hard getting around…"

Misa followed her to one of the couches lining the walls of the main hall. "Misa wants to know more about you before we're friends."

The other carelessly tossed her fur coat on the arm of the couch. "Oh, wow… I never know where to start!" she laughed. "I'm studying robotics here, like my daddy wanted me to, but… I don't really like it," Yulia wrinkled her nose like a kitten.

"Like making robots? Don't nerds do that?" Misa asked and the other nodded.

"…Nerds with weird fetishes. Nerds who've never seen a girl that doesn't look like a board. Nerds." The look of horror on her face was enough for Misa to understand.

"Don't go on! Stop right there. That's enough for Misa."

Yulia began to laugh. "I thought so! By the way, what's your style called? Is it some sub genre of Gothic?"

"Misa never thought of it before. It's Victorian Gothic mixed with Lolita fashion and some art deco influences. Misa loves all three~!"

"That's great! It means you created your own, personal style. That's very rare to find and so original!"

Before she knew why or how, Misa began pouring out her heart to a complete stranger. Yulia had something almost magnetic about her that made her smile contagious. She told Yulia about her childhood, about the robbery and how her parents were killed, about her fear and the horror that followed every night since, and the therapy sessions. She told her about the nights spent looking at the door and waiting for someone to break it down and shoot her, or stab her to death, about her paranoia creeping up on her from time to time.

By the time their car arrived, Yulia already knew more about Misa than she'd initially hoped. It was an incredibly promising beginning, as Misa kept talking and Yulia encouraged her. A few compliments and a couple of pitiful comments were enough to make the childish blonde open up in no time. Even so, she was afraid to ask about the Dragon's daughter yet or about the vice presidents – she couldn't risk breaking Misa's trust, even if it was easy to earn.

While the models were off to shoot a new commercial and ad campaign for the poorest business under the Yotsuba Corporation label, Caterina went to check on the evolution of the orphanage project.

"Good morning, Mr. Ooi. I would very much appreciate it if I didn't have to run after you and you had the decency of treating me according to my status." Although still fairly young – too young to inherit her father's business empire – Caterina hated it whenever someone treated her like a secretary. "Your personal assistant is right down the hall," she reminded Takeshi with a polite smile and a glare that could burn a hole in his bald head.

Even so, Ooi didn't look impressed. "Whatever it is, you can write a report and leave it on my desk. I'm going to eat during the first break of my day, so if you will excuse me…"

Caterina ran in front of him and stopped, forcing the man to do the same. "So you can ignore it like the last one? Please! I'm not that dumb, sir. And since when are you allowed to take a breakfast break at 10:30, while the other vice presidents can barely afford a lunch break between 2 and 3 pm, which happens to be your preferred interval for meetings?"

Rolling his eyes, Ooi pushed her aside by her shoulders. "Make it quick. What is it this time? Have you run out of money?"

"It so happens that you should have already known what the problem at hand is. The company that will build the orphanage and the familial houses for St. Nicholas still hasn't received the funds that you are supposed to allow. All I need is a signature with a stamp that will tell the bank to make the transaction. The next day, they can begin working on the first building, the largest and most important."

"Just leave it on my desk…" he mumbled.

Caterina crossed her arms over her chest. "Good. Because if it gets ignored again, I'm going to sue you and ask to be granted full rights, and you will have to pay me compensations for humiliation."

Ooi stopped to look back at her over his shoulder. "You can't do that unless you're married."

"You have no idea how far I would go to get what's mine. Please, enjoy your breakfast." Caterina threw him a smile, but she was boiling with rage. She hated being treated like a fool, like some inferior being – simply tolerated and ignored whenever possible.

The man glared after her, then kept walking. He was pleased that Caterina went in the opposite direction and sighed to himself. This was exactly the reason why he and the Dragon had turned a little distant over the years – he was too ambitious, too obsessed with every goal, with every single detail. The Dragon took everything as a challenge and was competitive to the extreme. By now, it was starting to show that Caterina had inherited at least some of her father's annoying character.

On the other end, Caterina wasn't the tiniest bit more pleased about their short interaction. She felt inferior, pushed aside and labeled as insignificant, almost like Ooi would reject any idea coming from her side simply because it was her initiative. Caterina stopped at the top of the stairs and set a small agenda on the railway. She flipped through her planner and looked over the tasks. She had to meet with Yukimura again and pay him even more money, since the case was nearing its final point now. After that, she had to call and make sure the construction company was still willing to wait for the funds. By that time, she should be able to go home and talk to Rin about other possible threats aimed at herself or Namikawa.

Caterina turned to address Ooi's secretary. "Good morning. Please make sure Mr. Ooi finds the file I left you three days ago on his desk as soon as he returns to his office."

The brunette raised one eyebrow at her and typed something into the computer. "The one about that charity association…?"

"Yes. I hope you didn't throw it into the shredder already."

Looking more bored and antisocial than her boss, the woman nodded. "I will look for it in Mr. Ooi's office."

With a nod, Caterina left. While going down the stairs, she passed by her lover without even looking him in the eyes. He stopped her for a moment to kiss her forehead and they held hands briefly, but then he was on his way, and so was she. Caterina had left her coat and her bag in his office, since she didn't receive one for herself yet.

Reiji was off to meet with Mido, Vice President of Corporate Strategy and Director of Financial Planning. Recently, the two of them began sharing similar ideas that were still different enough to allow a friendly and productive debate. Also, Mido happened to share his love for mind and strategy games like shogi and its western cousin, chess. Reiji found Mido in his office, negotiating his presence at an international conference on avant-garde marketing strategies and innovative ways to predict the general flow of the market. It was called the Wildcard Marketing Annual Conference.

Sitting down in one of the two armchairs placed in front of Mido's desk, Namikawa waited patiently for his colleague to state his free days through the phone. He knew from last year and the one before that the Wildcard Conference had no fixed date and it was usually held sometime in February, according to the schedules of its many participants. There were about 100 seats available only to those invited and it was an honor for any corporation to have a representative among them. This would be the third year in a row for Yotsuba Corporation.

After he was done and hung up the phone, Mido looked up. "Is there any way I can help you?"

"I'm not certain of it myself, but that's not the reason I came. I think we should meet somewhere private and talk. There are a few matters that I'd like to share with you and I'd appreciate your advice on some of them." Reiji knew that at least in theory, there were no cameras or microphones in the personal office of any of them. However… he began doubting Ooi's integrity.

"Sensitive topics, I assume? Personal, maybe…?" Mido had heard of his lover's age and couldn't help but think about it. There was no clear evidence that could accuse him of doing anything mature with the girl, but it was obvious to everyone that they did have a relationship that seemed to be going quite well – at least from the outside.

"Sensitive, indeed. Personal? Not so much. Collective, almost. Would you care to dine with me and Caterina this evening? We can play a few rounds afterwards, if you'd like."

After a brief moment of hesitation, Mido nodded. "She does seem to avoid looking at me whenever we meet… Do you happen to know the cause of this behavior? I wouldn't want to offend her."

But Reiji was just as confused. "I'm afraid I have no idea. But you can ask her yourself. My assumption is that maybe you remind her of someone. It seems to be the most logical explanation."

"At what time should I meet you? I'd hate to bother any of you." Mido looked over the files on his desk and over the open agenda that he had by the phone.

"If we can manage to leave work around 7, then perhaps 8 in the evening will be a reasonable hour." Namikawa stood up as his colleague nodded once again.

"Very well. I will meet you then." Mido pressed a button on his phone that called his personal assistant. "Please update my schedule for February 11th. I will be at the Wildcard Marketing Annual Conference from 12 pm to 8 pm. Free me one day before the Conference and make me some coffee, please. Also, today I will leave one hour early. Make sure that's possible."

Reiji left Mido's office and went into his own. He was disappointed to see that Caterina's coat was missing. He walked out and looked at his assistant with a lost, curious stare.

The woman smiled shyly. The man looked so innocent, almost like a child trying to find his words. "Yes, sir?"

"Caterina… When did she leave?"

The blonde looked at the clock on the wall. "About half an hour ago. Right after you left the office, sir. Would you like me to call her?"

Frowning, he shook his head. "No… Don't bother."

Before he could walk back into his office, the woman stopped him. "Sir? Would you like some coffee?"

Reiji nodded quietly and closed the door behind him. He just realized that he saw Caterina right before she left and they didn't even exchange hellos. He sat down at his desk and skimmed through the reports and weekly situations sent to him by his subordinates. It seemed that Caterina was right again – the sales were now stagnating, with a very shy tendency to grow on a few types of products. Hopefully, once the murder case will be solved and he will be declared a victim of rash conclusions and unsupported claims, the sales will increase significantly.

The way that the press was now covering his case was entirely different. There were supporters of his cause who spent hours debating on TV or on the radio with those who tried to accuse him. Perhaps his greatest advantage was his perfectly clean and transparent financial evolution. Nobody in the world could accuse him of stealing or manipulating contracts, of making dirty money or hiding his affiliations. He was never late with his payments and the National Bank spoke of him as an ideal client.

His personal assistant brought him a cup of freshly brewed coffee and a new report. Someone forgot to send it earlier. Usually, Namikawa would have sanctioned such behavior, but he didn't feel like it today.

"When should I schedule the monthly evaluation of the sales department, sir?"

He sighed. "…Tomorrow, unless anything else comes up. Do not announce it, like usual."

The blonde nodded. She left Reiji by himself and went back to playing a new online game. She had a virtual bakery for which her character had to produce everything. She had fruit trees and could order milk, eggs and flour in order to craft jams, pastries and meringue and make a pie for an order. It was quite relaxing and it allowed her to work on important documents at the same time.

Around noon, Misa eventually got to crush on the bench of a mall with Yulia. "My! Misa is sooo… so, so tired!" She only had two bags of her own on her hands, but agreed to carry two bags for Yulia as well. Her newest friend clearly had no worry about spending money, because she dragged Misa though the most exclusive and expensive stores available. They had strange drinks for which none could tell for sure their ingredients, ate cakes that claimed to be all vegan and no-bake, and very likely the most costly salads in the entire mall.

"Walking burns calories, darling," Yulia laughed. "Or that's what I heard. But it feels like it, right?"

Misa nodded and bent down to rub her calves. They were as hard as rocks and had been aching for a while now. "Misa can't take another step!"

"I know… me neither," Yulia sighed. She leaned against the back of the bench, then suddenly got up. "We forgot the most important thing ever!"

Trying the puppy eye trick, Misa looked up in hopes of making the other change her mind. "Is it really so important?"

"Well – duh! I just remembered that I'm throwing the coolest party ever and I've had such a good time with you today, that I want to invite you too. I'll print you an invitation when I get home."

Her brown eyes widened in shock, which quickly melted into excitement. "ME? I-I can't even believe! My God! Misa is so super happy!"

Yulia welcomed the bear hug coming her way with open arms. She held Misa for a moment, then gently pushed her away. Apparently, she should get used to receiving a lot of girl hugs for the sake of this friendship… Hopefully, the Dragon's daughter won't be so clingy.

"It's for my birthday. Oh! And I'd really love it if you brought someone along. You can take a friend of yours on your invitation."

In the meantime, Caterina had already finished her earlier tasks and decided to use a few hours to look for a few professors. Because of her situation, she had to drop out of high school, but there was no possible way she could lead a business empire without learning the basics of marketing and economy, financial education and the management of investment. She had to find someone who could help her catch up and give her a home school document so she could take an exam and graduate.

Once she noticed Ryuk in the room, she rolled her eyes and hang up. "What does he want now? I thought I told him there's nothing he can do to get me back."

 _'Hey, I'm just the messenger. No need to get mad at me!'_ the shinigami defended himself.

"Well…? Say what you have to say, then!"

The creature grinned. _'Light found some details that he thinks you would want to see. I can't say anything more, but it's a big deal. You know the people involved.'_

"I can't meet him these days. I have a few things to deal with…" she mumbled. "Is it urgent? Life and death, or can it wait?"

 _'I wouldn't say it's really urgent, but it kind of is a matter of death…'_

While Ryuk found it amusing, Caterina saw it as yet another problem she had to solve. "I'll call him about this… Tomorrow, maybe the day after. But I'll try to call him tomorrow and set up a meeting. It's best not to use cell phones or emails for details."

The shinigami flew through the wall and disappeared. Left alone, Caterina called the King to inform him about Ooi's promise. She intentionally left out the part where she threatened to marry and sue him – it was a last resort solution that she hoped she wouldn't have to use.

When Namikawa arrived home, he had brought along the maid. Caterina heard something about a dinner for four and some extra money on her salary from the top floor, so she walked out of her room. "Are you expecting anyone for dinner?"

"Yes, Mido is coming over. I'm starting to doubt Ooi's integrity, but I couldn't discuss this at work." He climbed up the stairs and kissed her briefly.

"Does it mean I have to wash my hair?" Rin whined from the living room.

"And wear something decent," Namikawa answered her. "Our guest should be here around 8."

"Aw, man… I'm not wearing any skirts or feminine stuff, hear me?" the teenager continued.

Caterina laughed a little. "Whatever you want, Rin, but try to avoid jeans and anything torn." Indifferent towards her lover, she went back into her room. "I have to decide what to wear." That was obviously an excuse, but as long as Namikawa let her get away with it, everything was fine.

She didn't come out until she heard the engine of a car stopping in front of the house. The girl checked her hair again in the mirror out of habit, then walked downstairs to welcome the only vice-president that reminded her of Light. True, he was a few years older and less optimistic, but she could easily picture Light exactly the same in another decade. However, at the rate things were moving in the world, she couldn't be sure both of them will still be alive in ten years.

"Good evening, sir. It's a pleasure to have you." She stepped out of the open door and let Mido step inside.

The man left his shoes by the door and hung his coat. It was merely something to show off his wealth since he didn't spend one minute in the cold. Mido had probably hopped into the car as soon as he locked his front door just as fast as he entered his colleague's house. "Good evening. I hope it won't be such a discomfort if I ask to speak to Mr. Reiji alone."

"None, though you might want to consider if this privacy is really necessary. After all, it's only a matter of minutes until I will find out the subject and the details of your discussion."

"I would rather not have servants or other employees listening, then. It's the least you could offer, I believe." He shot her a look, but only for a split moment. If this girl was going to inherit the entire Yotsuba Corporation, then Namikawa will most likely advance on a more powerful position. After that, their closest friends and partners were the very next to get promoted. Mido knew he was on Namikawa's white list for now, but he had to make sure he would stay there.

The head of the house was already at the table, watching Rin. The girl looked more like a boy to Mido, but he didn't question it. The man was glad that he had an opportunity of meeting the hacker that most likely slipped vital information from the Police to Namikawa's lawyer, whatever his name was.

"Mido, I'm glad you could accept my invitation." Namikawa stood up and extended his hand in order to shake his guest's. "Please, have a seat."

Mido shook his hand and sat on his left. Caterina had already reserved the seat on her lover's right side by leaving a cardigan on the back of the chair. "Yes, about the delicate matters that you've mentioned earlier…"

"It's about Mr. Ooi, the legal administrator of the Yotsuba Global Corporation until the end of July," Caterina brought it up.

"I've been suspecting him of keeping a rather close eye on us lately. It's almost like he expects us to commit some kind of mistake that would offer him an excuse to replace us. Naturally, I couldn't afford talking such a sensitive topic there, at the headquarters. Rin confirmed my suspicion."

When Mido looked at her, the girl sighed and turned her laptop around, playing a black and white film. Soon, Mido recognized the scene. It was Namikawa entering his office.

"A hidden camera? I have a… A bamboo pot and a lucky frog statuette in that corner. The camera must be extremely small and expensive, some last generation gadget, I think. There is no other way I could have missed it."

"Such cameras exist in every office, hidden among things," Namikawa sighed.

"There's this new brand, Apricot. They started with mobile phones running their own brand of operational system that must be upgraded every six months. Everything with the silvery apricot on its back is just a tiny bit better than the competition, but about three to five times more expensive, if we add the costs of updates. They're rumored to have created nano surveillance cameras that can be installed anywhere and controlled from any side of the world through a satellite. Up until now, I've only seen descriptions and requests on the dark web. Apricot never confirmed the rumors, but I think they sell these to spies and whoever can afford them on the black market for fabulous sums. Either that, or through acquaintances and relatives… you know, trustworthy clients. Some people want someone to guarantee that a said client is not some undercover cop, or someone selling the technology to their competition for millions – hell, it could be billions!"

"Rin, watch your language," Namikawa warned her.

All this time, Mido sat there in silence. "It's... extraordinary. I can't believe it. Ooi? Buying nano cameras from the black market in order to spy on us? What is he trying to prove…? There must be something he wants."

"To spend my money on useless acts of intimidation, perhaps," Caterina frowned.

The guest shook his head. "No… It's much more complex than simply a show of power. Ooi is very aware that his funds are limited in time and so, he is trying to make use of them while he still has access. Reiji, what do you say? Would it be possible for us to run a thorough check of our department activity? Perhaps there are unregistered sales that you've missed. Perhaps there are expenses I failed to notice. One great flaw of our system is that every department is able to function nearly independently. Such autonomy can create discontinuities that someone could use to their advantage, especially when that someone has to supervise the entire system."

"…Without his knowledge? No, I don't think it is possible. The 79th article mentions that the administrator of the continental branch or the owner of the Global Corporation need to sign the report containing the results of such a thorough check."

"The report, of course, but a report is always written after the action is complete. We need to read the regulations again. If we can follow my idea, I am confident we will find many inconsistencies to prove that Mr. Ooi had been taking money out of the company."

Rin watched the two men talking. "It might take me a while, but I can try to break into the system and download the files you want. If I get the files, you're gonna have to work from home for a while."

"Yes, that's a good idea…" Caterina agreed. "I'm going to help you if you tell me what exactly we are hoping to find."

"That's a titanic amount of work. It may take us over two months…" Namikawa disagreed. "We would need to compare and follow the course of every transaction and see the justification of every payment. This is the work of an accountant."

"We can hire an accountant," Caterina offered.

"That's a waste of money. There must be an easier way… Besides, we still don't know the motive. We can't accuse Ooi of anything unless we have a motive and a complete theory," Mido intervened. "I'm thinking that maybe we should check with the European branch and see in what state they are now. Lately, Russia has been putting a lot of economic pressure and even threatened to block the access of our corporation on the market of ex-communist countries in Eastern Europe. Doesn't it seem strange that we've never been threatened about the North-Western Asian countries?"

Caterina froze. "One of my father's worst enemies… No, I can't believe this. But it makes perfect sense!"

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by **AbandonedSock,** as always. _

_I have so very little time to write and several stories competing for attention, but I'll get to it! At least until the end of the year, I plan on writing as much as possible. Of course, I'm still glad to hear from you and it really makes my day whenever I see someone writing a review!_


	52. LI - Silver Platter

_LI – Silver Platter_

* * *

It was one of the last days of snow for the first half of the year, but the wind was still harsh and cold. The evening was freezing her breath from the minute she took to walk from the back seat of the car to the front door of the White Elephant Teahouse.

They both learned to fall in love with the place all over again. After the shooting, the teahouse had gained some negative fame, making it often avoided by the rich and spoiled kids of the modern-day aristocrats. The lowered prices began to attract students and children of the working class that could sit down and enjoy the atmosphere, pretending to be rich bastards for an hour.

Caterina looked ridiculous in his eyes. Her small frame seemed to be swallowed by the oversized fur coat, obviously too heavy to feel comfortable and definitely there just for the parade. He already knew that she had a new driver who would never let her walk the streets alone through the cold, snowy evening, which defeated the whole purpose of carrying around a coat.

Light stood up and offered to hang her coat. "Why do you insist on carrying it? Clearly, you don't need it."

The girl shrugged and let him take her coat. There was a hanger right behind him. In the meantime, she sat down and relaxed. "It elevates my outfit from basic to classy."

Kira took a second to notice her outfit. She had a pair of fake leather leggings and a fuzzy top, both pieces showing off her skinny arms and legs and her tiny waist. The soft peach shade of her sweater gave her a slightly healthier glow, but it didn't hide the prominent bones of her baby wrists. It revealed her collar bones and a few ribs right below.

"If your outfit says anything, it's that you haven't touched food for a few months…"

Sighing, she set one hand over her forehead. "Is that why you called me here?"

"No, but as long as you don't know why, I'm certain that you won't leave. So, let's talk about this – did he ask you to do it?" Light sat in front of her and watched her closely. If the last time he thought that maybe it was the light that made her look a bit sick, now he was certain that she had a problem.

"Light, stop it. It's getting ridiculous! Everything I do, I do it for myself – I thought you already knew that. Let's stop spinning in circles and get to the real reason why you insisted for us to meet."

He nodded. "Look – if you want to fuck that moron, fine. But don't destroy yourself for him. Every single time I see you, I can barely even see anything. You're so thin, you're transparent."

"I'm not! Stop exaggerating it!"

Light took her hand in his and set it on the table. "Look at your bones, your ligaments and your veins – you are transparent. It's not normal!"

She pulled her hand away. "So, what? I'm feeling better than ever. I can fit in the same size that I was wearing three or four years ago."

Sighing, Light let his hand on the table with his palm facing the ceiling. "You were still a girl back then – a child. A lot happened in three years. I don't fit in the same clothes I was wearing then and that's fine."

"Not since two became the new four and zero, the new two…" She closed her eyes for a moment and saw the image of Namikawa's secretary again. That one was naturally thin, eating chocolate cake every day at lunch break without any consequences. "Everyone in the office is perfectly skinny and pretty, in the latest fashion and absolutely impeccable."

"That means they're plastic. Just get over it. Come on, we'll order some chocolate cake. You used to love it, right?"

Sighing, Caterina forced him to change the subject. "You've got no reason to be worried about me. There is no such thing as you and me on a romantic level on which you should worry about me. Now, getting back to the real subject here, I want to know what was so important."

Light frowned, then leaned with one elbow on the table. "Vitto is alive. Does it sound important enough for you now?"

Her eyes widened in shock as she leaned back. "Alive?! But how?"

With a shrug, Light straightened his back and pulled a few papers out from between the pages of the Death Note. Those were plain paper sheets with no supernatural power, but he didn't want them wrinkling up in his bag. "I thought you might find it useful. Also, consider it a warning. If that boyfriend of yours demands you to starve yourself or raises his voice or his hand at you, I can make him go through hell before he meets his end. This time, I experimented with Vitto. He will die in a couple of hours of frostbite. I saw it as a good ending to his story."

Caterina looked up from the papers to see an evil smirk on his face. "…How on earth do you make someone get this sort of information?"

"Aren't you worried about his ending? I bet that Frost is already pulling out his fingernails and his teeth in an attempt of making him talk, but his lips are sealed. It's only a matter of time until Frost will understand and get bored, eventually leaving Vitto to freeze to death in some deserted arctic area."

"I'm more worried about you, honestly. You almost look like you're enjoying it." The girl looked back down at the papers. In a sloppy handwriting with uneven letters and ink stains, Vitto had given her everything she needed in order to expose and bring down one of the most powerful men on the planet.

Light kept smiling. "Perhaps I am. Do you need me to remind you what kind of monster he was? I believe that the Devil will thank me, if there is one. I may have sent him one of the worst in this world."

Caterina skimmed the papers again. These were probably all of the missing pieces of the puzzle… She immediately came up with a lie that would explain her possession, but it was still so much, she couldn't believe her eyes. There were precise coordinates of Frost's hideouts and illegal storage houses, names and pictures of people who worked with him and of corrupted officers from the International Police, from the CIA, and the NPA.

"Isn't Koreyoshi Kitamura your dad's boss? But it doesn't make sense… He's been on our side during the murder investigation. Unless…" She looked over two pages with printed photographs, each matching one of the names written by Vitto. "He's not on the list."

Kira stood up. "Well, you know how to find me. You're welcome, by the way, and keep in mind that I can repeat the process with anyone."

"Wait!" The Italian threw the papers on the table and stood up as well. "That's it? You're just going to leave now? I mean, I was expecting something… different. I thought you'd try to hold me here longer, try to make me feel in debt. I can't believe this is all you wanted."

With a shrug and a smirk, Light turned to leave. "You already feel in debt, so you're going to repay me somehow. I'll wait for it. Though, you should know that I'm not exactly patient."

Once she realized the embarrassing situation in which she had put herself, Caterina sat down and held her forehead. She looked over the papers again – coordinates, addresses, names, routes, hierarchic relationships, interests. It was all there, from A to Z. Vitto was paying for it with hours over hours of torture, of crushed bones and burned flesh. The thought of a man screaming out his lungs from pain just so she could hold five pages of handwritten information and two pages of printed photographs attached made her spine crawl. It was a bloody and gruesome gift, but a gift nonetheless – and Vitto's suffering only gave it more value.

Caterina sat there for a long time, reading everything several times. There was a lot of research still to be done, but she had every clue she could possibly want laid down on a silver platter for her. It suddenly made her think about her father. Perhaps someone had somehow managed to deliver the same five-pages-long report of key connections to Ross and it was through the work of a sacrificed pawn that he managed…

Although not on the list, she took out a pen and wrote Yukimura's name on the left edge of the second page. It was rather odd that Kitamura was working for Frost, but also leading the case towards an ending desirable for Namikawa. The two were on opposite sides of the war zone, so Yukimura must be the connection between them. It reminded her greatly of Vincent's personality – an arrogant old man, extremely secretive and demanding, with a superiority complex.

The Italian stood up and gathered her things. She left some money for the waiter, simply because it was impolite to occupy a table and leave without ordering anything, then rushed home. She had a new project for Rin – the Snowflake Hunt. She was determined to try her mind at making every single Snowflake fall, so that her father's murderer will fear for his life and finally start taking her seriously.

At the same time, Misa was getting ready to leave her apartment. She was planning on dragging Caterina with her, no matter how annoying she might be. Tonight was the 12th of January and Yulia was celebrating her birthday – who wouldn't want to go to such a party?

The blonde took a cab to where Caterina told her she could be found. Surprisingly, her name wasn't on the mailbox, but she went ahead and knocked anyway. She was surprised to find a chubby teenager in her underwear unlocking the door with a suspicious look on her face.

"Who the hell are you?" Rin asked while chewing a piece of fruity gum.

The blonde was not prepared for this. "Umm…" she chuckled, "I'm Misa-Misa! Don't you recognize me?"

"Sure I do. You're uglier in real life. What do you want? I'm not buying anything."

"WHAT?!" Misa yelled, right when Caterina was stepping out of Namikawa's car that her driver was using during her lover's hours at the office.

The red-haired signed the driver to park the car and wait there. "What are you doing here, Misa? Did anyone threaten you?" She did tell Misa to find her if she was in a desperate situation, but didn't expect it to happen so soon. Was Frost already looking for them?

"Who is this… _this_!" She pointed a black nail with pink glitter dabbed on its tip towards Rin, while the teenager just rolled her eyes.

"Can you get inside already? It's freezing." Rin left the door open and dragged her bare feet over the carpet until she eventually collapsed on the couch and hugged her laptop again. It was heating up because of a new game she had paused when Misa knocked at the door, but the warmth felt nice against her cold thighs.

Sighing deeply, Caterina could feel a headache coming in just a couple of moments. She led Misa inside and left her shoes in the hall. "Don't mind her. She's just staying here for a while. Now, do you want to tell me what really happened?"

Misa closed the door and leaned against it. "Sure! But first, let me see your dressing room – I bet it's so amazing and packed with fabulous clothes! You've got to get dressed and put some killer makeup and heels and a matching purse too~"

"Handbag. Why? What's happening?"

Not bothering to answer, Misa was already dragging Caterina upstairs. "It's on the top floor, right? Bedrooms and dressing rooms are always upstairs!"

"Look, Misa, it's nothing personal, but do you mind telling me what _the fuck_ is going on?"

Just like she hoped it would, the curse word contrasted with the polite beginning of her phrase and emphasized her irritation. Caterina could pull away her arm from Misa's grip right at the middle of the stairs, while the other needed a few seconds to understand what was happening.

"…Misa just wanted to help you feel better," the young woman whined as tears appeared in the corners of her eyes. "You work all day and never answer your phone. Misa has to leave voicemail to hear from you and you always sound so tired and sigh so often, Misa just thought you could take a few hours to… relax."

Caterina rolled her eyes and tried to avoid looking at the other. "Come on, cut it out – don't cry on me. You know how I feel about that." The Italian walked past Misa towards her bedroom and opened the door. "Where did you say we were going? And I'm only staying until 10 pm. I have work tomorrow and I don't want to hear any buts."

As soon as she understood that she had won, Misa ran up to Caterina and gave her a giant bear hug, only to look around the room half a second later. "What's this? _'The Lover'_? I've seen the movie, but isn't it a bit too Loli for you?" she asked, picking up a book from Caterina's coffee table.

The host immediately picked the book from her hands and placed it in a drawer in the nearest nightstand. "That's not why you are here. The dresser is that way," she pointed towards a four-door walk-in closet.

"Righty~" Misa opened the doors wide and began analyzing everything. "You remember I told you about Yulia? The new model. She's Russian, super-smart and sooo cute and chic, it's unreal! She wears Louboutin and Versace and Jimmy Choo and Chanel every day!"

Caterina nodded, leaving her bag with the papers that Light gave her inside a small hidden drawer underneath the bed. She let the covers hang over it and looked at Misa.

"You mentioned her a few times…"

The blonde was already going through Caterina's closet as if it was her own. She began throwing out every dress she found pretty enough. "Your clothes are so boring – black and dark red only?"

"I own some greens, grays and some other things. You know, everyone should have a color of choice or a color scheme. Didn't you notice? The Queen of England has the rainbow. The lead singer of 30 Seconds to Mars had bright red accents on black. Karl Lagerfeld went even further – he has a signature look, from head to toe. It's iconic." Caterina though about her mother. She had a taste for white and pastels in a very Barbie-doll way.

Surprised, Misa took a moment to think about it. "I guess… But not everyone wears the same one or two colors over and over again."

"Well, no, but they all have a dose of consistency – something people associate with their image. It's… one way to make yourself noticed. You should work until you no longer have to introduce yourself, that's what Padre believed. Having an iconic look associated with you is one way to make people remember your name."

Caterina stopped explaining herself when she noticed that the other was more interested in the dresses that she kept for special occasions. Some still had the price tag attached to them. Misa chose a dark blue midi A-line dress for herself. "It's so very pretty! Can I wear it? Misa loves it, and it will make my eyes look so blue!"

The Italian nodded and took out a long, black dress with a lacy top and layered fabric flowing from the waist to her ankles. She chose a pair of red heels and a matching clutch large enough to hide a gun and her phone. "Do you need shoes and a handbag?"

Misa shook her head. "Misa already has everything!" She let a black backpack covered in patches and pins on her host's bed, only to take out a pair of black heels. "Misa doesn't need a purse."

By the time they were ready to leave, Yulia called her newest best friend. Frost had already informed her about a possible leakage of information and he interrogated her about it. The model began worrying for her own life now that Frost was furious and looking for someone to blame, which meant she had to be on her toes for a while. The woman kept pacing the entrance hall of the club where she had organized the party.

"Darling? Where are you? I hope you haven't changed your mind all of a sudden, have you?"

However, Yulia would have never guessed how complicated spying on the Dragon's heir could really be. The girl had already anticipated that the models will keep in touch – it was only a matter of time until it happened, so Caterina took Misa's phone and ignored the blonde's protests. "Hello. Who is this?"

"Yulia, of course! Misa saved her number, see? It's on the screen!" Misa tried to reach her phone, but Caterina didn't allow it.

 _'Well, I thought it was obvious. Who are you, if you don't mind?'_ the voice asked back.

"What are you trying to prove?!" Misa went on protesting. "Give it back!"

Caterina placed her index over Misa's lips, trying to hush her. "I asked first. Please give me your name." The Italian walked to the desk she had in a corner and looked over the files that she had received from Rin, hacked from Shimura's computer.

 _'Yulia,'_ the Russian answered with an awkward laugh, _'Who wants to identify me?'_

"Your full name, please. Also, I'd like to know your father's affiliation to any economic entity, so that we may negotiate a possible… collaboration, perhaps. I understand that today is your birthday, correct?" the youngest of them went on. Caterina was looking at the file, waiting for a response. "Hello?"

Suddenly, Yulia had found herself in boiling hot water once again in less than two minutes. _'…Romanov. Yulia Romanov. I would have to ask my father before I tell you more about the company.'_

Caterina kept ignoring Misa, who became more agitated trying to take her phone back.

"I will meet you in half an hour at the café on the corner of the Central Park. From there, you may leave with Misa and celebrate further. However, I believe it is better for us to meet there."

 _'Isn't that café abandoned?'_

"Closed, for now. I'll wait for you there in exactly thirty minutes."

Eventually, Misa was allowed to snatch the cell phone from Caterina, but the conversation was already over and Yulia had hung up. "What was that all about?! You told Misa we were going to the party! To-ge-ther! Not on my own!"

"What do you have to celebrate? A stranger's birthday? Please – you didn't honestly believe that!" Caterina stood up with a sigh. "Let's go. Hurry up and throw something over your shoulders. I don't want you to get sick."

The blonde stomped her feet. "No! You explain yourself now!"

Rolling her eyes, Caterina threw her a coat from her wardrobe and grabbed her fur. "I will on our drive there. I want you to wait in the car, by the way. It will only take a couple of minutes."

"That's it! Misa had enough of this! I'm going to the party alone!"

Caterina raised one brow at her and smirked. "Of course, but don't forget to leave everything borrowed from me here. Have fun!"

With a scream of frustration and a squeaky growl, Misa eventually followed Caterina outside where her driver had kept the car warm. They both sat in the back while Misa kept her arms crossed over her chest and turned her back on Caterina, as much as her seat allowed her.

The driver noticed, but respected Caterina's instructions precisely. When he parked the car by the abandoned café, he locked the doors of the car so that Misa could not follow his young mistress outside.

Yulia was already there in a sequin bondage dress, shivering in a pair of golden stilettos and trying to keep her body heat with her bare arms wrapped around herself. "Are you the one who picked up the phone?"

The girl nodded and went to unlock the door of Vitto's café. "Let's go inside. There is something I want you to see."

Scared, but well aware she had no way of backing down, Yulia followed Caterina inside the building. She looked around at the dusty paintings and furniture and noticed the thick red carpet on the floor.

"I already found out who sent you. I know you are here to spy on me through Misa, though I would like you to assure your superiors they have no reason to feel threatened. Vittorio stole from my father as well," she began as she showed the Russian around.

"I… I don't think I follow. I work for Yotsuba Homes." The woman began sweating already. She followed the red-haired to the basement. Vitto's things were still there, including the chair of torture and two bottles of old, rotting blood. The model wrinkled her nose and covered it with her sleeve. "What's this stench?"

Caterina took out a gun from the inside of her coat and pointed towards one of the couches. "Please. This basement had been designed to muffle loud noises, so don't even consider screaming. Set your guns and weapons on the coffee table and make yourself comfortable." There was a dirty silver platter on the coffee table.

Fury and rage began burning in the model's icy blue eyes as she obeyed Caterina's command. The Italian was blocking the only way out, while Yulia didn't want to risk dying in the basement of an abandoned coffee house. She sat down carefully, disgusted by the dirt on the couch, but too afraid to protest. "Who on earth are you…? How did you know?"

Caterina watched her set one gun and three knives on the platter. "I am a Dragon, my dear. Now, let's talk. Who sent you? Was it Ivan Frost? Or are you a traitor, working for Rod Ross now?"

"I have no idea what you are talking about!" the woman yelled. "Let me out of here, or you will regret it."

"Will I, now?" she laughed. "My dear, do you honestly believe that Frost would give two shits about your life? I bet he already has a dozen fresh prostitutes aspiring to be promoted to the status of a model and sent to work in much better conditions – those that you have now. I wonder how much time will he need to replace you… five seconds? Or is he the choosy type, taking another five to make up his mind?"

The blonde clinched her teeth. She was glancing towards her weapons every now and then, but the other kept her finger on the trigger. Yulia was afraid she would not have enough time to take a gun and shoot it before she would be shot. She only had three hours on her hands to learn how to shoot a gun before she left for the airport and flew to Japan.

"Let me explain a few things to you, so that you may write a consistent report this weekend and earn yourself a promotion. I've had Vittorio under my control for years now. He's been a pawn that I sacrificed without a second thought, just like Frost is ready to do with you. I gave him the order of bringing me information about Frost and his associates in order to prove to everybody how weak he really is. Anybody knows, but you're too afraid to say it. He's too arrogant, too ignorant, he makes too many rash decisions. For example, he sent you here, in Japan, to get hired by Yotsuba, work with Amane Misa, become close friends, and eventually lure both of us into a crowded place with few exits and lots of alcohol. Unfortunately for him, I've already seen that trick being used, so now I am capable of avoiding it. Yulia, or whatever your real name may be, you will have to deliver him a message: I wish to collaborate."

As Caterina kept talking and pacing the room, Yulia could feel her liver already screaming in disgust. The scent made her nauseous, which was quite bad, considering her habit of throwing up at least twice a day.

"…You're insane. Frost does not ' _collaborate_ ' – you either work for him, or you die. That's the rule."

Caterina shrugged. "His rules are not my problem. I make the rules now, and I wish to have a talk with him. I believe we could help each other eliminate common threats. Also, here's a new rule – remember your status and shut your mouth. Models are like dolls. All you have to do is smile and look pretty. Thinking and expressing opinions are not on the list."

The Italian picked up one of the bottles left by Vitto, only filled halfway but already a paradise for worms and flies. "Insects are the first who recognize death, my dear. Have you ever noticed? Flies know you're dying before you realize your time is up. Padre used to say that they can taste the scent of death."

Yulia gathered her long, shiny, bony legs beside her and crossed her ankles. "What do you want?!"

"I want all threats eliminated. Now, darling, I would like you to go over to that table, take a napkin and write me the IP address of your superior's computer. Remember that unlike you, I've already made my first kill. If you try to trick me, I will shoot you so many times, you will pass out from the pain and die from the loss of blood." Caterina kept threatening the other with her gun.

Inside her, something was changing. Although she still feared for her life, it no longer paralyzed her. Instead, fear only added a tingling sensation, a strange kind of excitement. It was mixing with anger and a taste of power that she found almost intoxicating. Caterina watched the watch that she had made a habit of wearing on her left wrist. It was a small, silver watch with a fancy 'C' encrusted on the inside of the glass.

Yulia took a pencil and a napkin from the table, but then realized what Caterina wanted.

"I-I don't know the… IP address."

"That's alright. You will find out by the end of the night, write it on a paper, fold the paper and seal it with scotch tape, so that I can see if anyone reads it before I do. After that, give it to Misa and she will deliver it to me. If not…" The Italian poured the rotting contents of the bottle over the silver platter on the coffee table, soaking the model's gun and knives. A small cloud of flies took off and several worms began crawling through the dark mess. "I will make you drink the other bottle. Consider it payback for my fallen man. I think he would appreciate my sense of humor."

By the time Yulia eventually walked out of the café, she was paler than snow and had already vomited once. Her whole body was trembling, but not from the cold – her heart beat too fast to let her feel the winter. She walked out as soon as her weak legs allowed her and walked over to the cab waiting for her.

As soon as she approached, Misa pushed the car's door so strongly, the driver was afraid it was going to beak. The blonde was surprised as well by how easily it opened once the driver had unlocked it, but she didn't waste any time asking about it. Instead, she ran after Yulia. "What happened there? Are you alright? Misa was so worried!"

The model faked a smile that couldn't even fool Misa and sat in the back of the cab.

"…Nothing. I'll slip you a note for that girl later, but before that, let's go enjoy the party. Hopefully no one will notice I've been gone."

All this time, Light has been checking his phone every few minutes and his email too.

Part of him knew that Caterina will not contact him so soon, but he still had some hope left that maybe she will.

He kept writing a fair share of names, scheduling them by the hour for the next week. It had become a habit to play it extra-safe and write at least 24 names in advance, using any time he had left. After all, what else could he be doing? Homework was too simple for his genius mind and barely occupied him two hours a day. He needed an occupation so that he would stop thinking about her, at least occasionally.

 _'I'm not sure if what you did was bold or stupid,'_ Ryuk took the freedom to point out.

Light shrugged and sat on the edge of his bed, facing his window and glancing outside.

"I don't consider myself ' _stupid_ ', but if you are trying to say that I'm changing my approach, than you are not far from the truth."

 _'Oh…? So all this was strategy?'_ the creature asked again. He was just about to burst into laughter, which he did once he heard Light's answer.

"Of course. What else do you think it was? I've planned everything from the very beginning, when I wouldn't show you the Death Note. I didn't want you to spoil the surprise for Caterina, since she can see and hear you. It was necessary to keep it all secret until the very last moment." He looked at the watch that he had left on one of the nightstands and then placed it back down. "Vitto is now dead. Frost is furious, which makes him less rational and easier to manipulate, and Caterina was finally capable to see my true genius at work. She is perfectly capable of filling in the few blanks that Vitto couldn't cover, so for now, my turn has passed." He sighed and stood up to stretch. "The only bad in this is that… I hate waiting for it to be my turn again."

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Here's another chapter, published with the help of my beta reader, **AbandonedSock.**_

 _I couldn't help but throw another external reference here. The book that Misa noticed is an autobiographic novel that's been adapted into a film in 1992. I recommend it and I think it's something Caterina would read or watch in secret._

 _Also, you did get one of your answers, **HisRedRose123,** but you'll need to wait a bit longer to see what Ooi is really doing. Here's a minor spoiler: the next few chapters will bring back the deaths of Anastasia and Diego, as well as the Dragon's actions in "XXII - Warning"._


	53. LII - The Thirteenth

_LII – The Thirteenth_

* * *

The night seemed nothing but the usual, yet it could never be just another night of games and research. It was already past midnight, which meant it was officially February 13th, even if the sun wasn't going to rise anytime soon. An emergency alarm interrupted the teenager's game as a pop-up message flashed on the middle of the screen. One of the key targets was in danger.

Upstairs, the two had fallen asleep together only because she insisted on feeling a human body laid on top of her own. There was a sense of safety that helped ease her constant anxiety. Namikawa didn't agree at first, but he was too tired to fight with her on the subject.

However, Caterina was only slumbering. A hurricane of thoughts were keeping her alert, so much that a twig knocking on the window could jerk her awake and make her reach out for the gun on the nightstand. Her lover insisted that it was unnecessary, but caution was never a waste of resources.

As soon as she heard footsteps coming up the stairs, Caterina pushed her lover off and loaded the gun, muffling and hiding it between the covers. She was relieved to see Rin standing in the doorway, but kept holding the gun with one hand and the covers over her chest with the other.

"Glad someone's awake. An alarm just got triggered on an alley, 'bout five streets from here."

Caterina nodded. "Is the target moving? Or are they dead?" It could have been several people – the lawyer, the driver, The King, his adopted son, or Misa.

"Stood relatively still for a bit, now it's moving." Rin kept her eyes on the screen of the laptop that she was carrying.

The Italian put on a bra and a sweater, pulled up a pair of jeans and rushed downstairs. "If it's Misa, I need to reach her before she reaches the police. I'll be back in minutes. If not, contact the King."

A little while back, right after Mido's visit, Namikawa thought it would be a good idea to give everyone a way to signal if they were in trouble. As useless as it was in case of Kira trying to eliminate someone, the idea could be a life-saver in most other situations, when the enemy was an ordinary human being.

The King had also received the alarm. Without any hesitation, he woke up Yao, got him into a car so they could stay together, and drove towards Namikawa's house. Ten minutes later and halfway across Tokyo, the man saw a familiar blonde with twin pigtails fighting off a man in an alleyway. She nearly jumped in front of his car.

The Asian loaded his gun and got out of the car.

"Step away from the lady and keep your hands where I can see them. No funny business, or I blow your jewels off and your brain goes next!"

The offender, taken by surprise, took half a step back. Immediately, Misa ran behind her savior. "Thank you, sir! Misa is so grateful!"

"Hey, I just wanted an autograph-!" the stranger tried to defend himself. He smirked, ignoring the gun pointed at him.

"You did not! Pervert!" Misa yelled when she heard him blabbering a fake motive.

The King shot Misa a short glance, enough for the stranger to take out a knife from his pocket and charge towards the King. He nearly got Misa in the process, but his focus was now fixed on the intruder. Then, all of a sudden, the attacker fell to his knees and clenched his chest. His face turned a shade darker as he cringed in pain, struggling to breathe. In just a few seconds, he fell to his side and relaxed completely.

Thinking this would be a traumatizing experience for her, the King bent down and closed the attacker's eyes. He checked the man's vitals just to make sure, but it was obvious that he had died. The King then looked up at Misa and shook his head.

"Is he really dead?" was all she could ask. "That was a heart attack! Kira is watching over us," she mumbled on a sweet voice as she brought her hands together and thanked the clouds in the sky.

"No, that was a heart attack caused by high levels of stress hormones and possibly an intake of dubious substances that accelerate the cardiac rhythm," Yao corrected her from the window of his protector's car. "It's rather common, you see-!"

"No way!" Misa interrupted him. "It was Kira – I'm sure of it! He avenged my parents last week and he saved my life now because he knows I've done nothing bad, so he loves me and has my back!"

The Chinese boy remained startled by her ignorance. "Allow me to refuse discussing the subject any further…" He leaned to the side so he could see the King. "Was this the emergency?"

"Ha! So you admit I'm right!" Misa declared her victory. "That reminds me, who are you?"

The man found the situation amusing. "Yeah, this was the emergency. I'm a friend of Caterina. You're the model from Yotsuba Homes, right? Come on, I'll drive you home."

Then, Misa remembered the note she had to deliver. "No, thanks. Misa has to give something to Katy."

"I doubt she approves of the nickname," Yao mentioned just to watch the girl's reaction. She didn't look older than sixteen, so the boy was going to treat her as such.

Misa walked around the car to sit on the passenger's seat. "But it's adorable, don't you think?"

Yao shrugged with a small smile, which Misa interpreted as an agreement. He yawned and leaned against the door so he could stare outside the window. He was going to sketch anything that caught his eye during the boring time when he will have to wait for the King to walk out of a meeting or come home from somewhere. The boy wasn't particularly good in art, but it was enough to give him something to do. He knew this, even if the King constantly tried to encourage him to take a few art classes.

The man got into the car and turned on the engine. Misa was looking through his things and happened to find a gun. "Is this real?"

The King panicked and turned to look at her. He stopped on the side of the street and took the gun from her. "Please, don't touch anything. It could be dangerous."

"So it really is real? Wow. I never held a gun before."

"Obviously," the boy commented from the back. He had seen Misa looking inside the gun. How stupid can somebody be to actually do that? Or maybe it would have been natural selection…

"Yes, it's real. But don't tell anybody, alright? I took it in case I needed it to save you." The man gave her a tense smile and stood there awkwardly, looking for a place to put the gun. "Yao, do you mind?"

The boy took the gun from his caretaker, unloaded it, and hid it between the chairs. "Don't worry."

"Wait, so I can't look at a gun, but that kid can?"

Both of them shrugged. "I showed him how to handle guns, so it's safe. The kid is way smarter than others his age. He's smarter than some adults, y'know?" he tried to pass a joke, but Misa took it as an offense.

"Are you calling me stupid?"

"Not at all-!" the King answered, but Yao interrupted him.

"Precisely. Taking the gun from you might offend you, but he probably saved your life. You could have received a bullet to the eye by accident, which would have had no trouble penetrating the skull and the brain. In fact, from such a close distance, it would have been very likely to come out through the back of your head, hit the ceiling of the car and hurt one of us as well, but I doubt I should fill your head with the mathematical explanation. Just take my word for it."

Misa looked at the King, who started the engine again. "…He's right about the danger. You could have hurt yourself by accident."

The blonde held her tongue and kept her hands busy with her phone. Perhaps searching the car of a stranger who just happens to pop up at the right time and place wasn't her best idea. She waited for the King to reach Caterina's place and park the car so she could pass the note to Caterina and go home. It was way too much action for one evening, even for her.

In the living room, Rin and Caterina were following the two targets that had become one. They could see the two red dots moving on the screen, following the map of the city. When they reached her house, the Italian went to greet them. She was relieved to see everyone alive, but her enthusiasm faded as soon as Misa opened her mouth to complain about her terrible evening and explain how everything was Caterina's fault.

"Did you bring me what Yulia gave you?" she asked once Misa took a break to breathe.

"Here!" the blonde slapped a note into Caterina's palm. "I'm going home! You don't care at all about me, anyway. Everything happened just because you wanted me to bring you this stupid piece of paper! I nearly died for a paper! If I would have stayed on my normal way home, this would have never happened!"

"True," Caterina glared at her. "It would have been worse. King, can you drive her home and make sure she gets there in one piece? After that, return."

"Sure thing." The man let Yao walk inside and opened the door for Misa to get back into his car. "Come on, little lady."

Misa dragged her feet to the car, still fuming. "Such a liar… And I tried to be super nice to her and make her have a good time for once…"

Caterina didn't bother calling her out for mumbling behind her. Instead, she welcomed Yao and went back inside to open the note. She saw the hand-written IP address and passed it to Rin. "So, this will be enough?"

The girl nodded. "It should be. Just give me some time…" The girl began typing away as Yao sat by her side. They began talking about computers and programming, but Caterina could barely understand half. It made her think about Vitto – in a way, Rin was the most valuable gift from him.

She went to make coffee for everyone and waited to hear of any progress. The next few hours were going to bring up all kinds of information to the surface, which will prove vital in the next few months. Caterina had to restore her father's name and prove she didn't need to hide behind a man, and what better way to gain fame and respect than taking out your enemies?

Ross was her worst enemy and the one who ordered the death of her parents through the Snake, but Frost was more aggressive these days. She considered the possibility of them working together, but quickly crossed it out as unlikely. Ross was probably standing back and watching the confrontations. It would be easier to let two enemies take each other out rather than trying to do it yourself – that's what Ross must be thinking.

"So, I broke into their database through the IP you brought me…" Rin eventually said. "There are accounting files that I can't open because I don't have the program, it's only used by central banks."

"We've found child pornography and I think I can identify the men in the pictures. I need my laptop from home." Yao was looking at the faces of the men.

Rin nodded. "I'll create a private network so I can send you all this. It will be nearly impossible to track."

"Is there any possibility?" Caterina asked.

After a long pause, Rin nodded. "…They would need a very capable hacker and know where to look for our connection, but it's possible for the information to be tracked down to his laptop. At least in theory, any computer can be tracked, but the chances are small."

Caterina went to call the King so the man could bring Yao's laptop. "Then, we're going to risk it. This is too important to back down now."

At the first hour in the morning, Caterina already had printed files on Ivan Frost, Misa's new friend, Kitamura and his associates, people in the secret services and members of the ICPO, accountants, financial directors, managers of all kinds working for Yotsuba and for the competition. She thought about calling Yukimura, but she ended up calling Light instead. "Good morning, darling. Turn on your TV."

Taken by surprise, he took a moment to recognize her voice over the phone. "My love… What are you going to do?" But before he could receive an answer, Caterina had already hung up.

 _'What was that? A bit early for morning chit chat, if you ask me,'_ Ryuk said. He found it a little confusing.

As Light sat up in his bed, he rested with an elbow over his knee. "I think… I'm going to be a few steps closer to my New World by sundown." A sly smirk spread on his face. "I just hope that my father's superior is on her list, too. Dad deserves a promotion."

The shinigami smirked. _'Finally, something's about to happen!'_

"Have you been anxious for it, Ryuk?" Light asked with amusement.

 _'Just bored, really – I thought the two of you were never going to do anything exciting again! …Which reminds me, what about Frost? You did collaborate.'_

Light eventually decided to stand up, after rubbing his eyes and stretching his arms. "I couldn't care less about him. I'm just following my plan, while he is not part of my plan."

 _'Well, yeah, but aren't you worried Caterina's going to find out?'_

He shrugged on his way to the bathroom. "Not at all. She couldn't do anything to me, just like I couldn't do anything to her. If not out of love, at least out of respect. We both knew that I had at least a few occasions when I could have ended her life, but I chose otherwise."

As Shimura was just waking up, he turned on his television out of habit. He liked some background noise in the house while he got ready for work and on occasion, he could hear something useful from the news. The man wrote a note on his fridge to remember and pack his bags for the Wildcard Conference held tomorrow, then returned to his room and took out a suit from his wardrobe.

 _'Wait… We've just been informed by one of our sources that the computers of several police officers have been hacked! What's more surprising is that no files were stolen – on the contrary! The printers are now running on their own. It seems someone is trying to give information to the police. We'll be back on the subject as soon as we have any news.'_

Kitamura was shocked to see everyone in his office standing in a circle around the two main printers.

"Sir! Good morning, sir. Won't you take a look at this?" one of his subordinates greeted him. "A hacker is giving us information on these people. Look! The first one is Satori Yukimura, lawyer. It says here we should check these bank accounts in Switzerland – _'the three safes of bribes and extras'_. Next paragraph reads, _'S.Y. should be investigated for erasing the evidences in the following cases: The Spyder Virus'_. Sir, isn't that the virus that erased all of our data base a few years ago? This is amazing!"

The man felt his blood's temperature rising. Suddenly, he was in hell, stepping over burning coals while the soles of his shoes were melting too fast. "Give me that!" He snatched the papers from his subordinate's hand and pushed him aside. "For how long has this been going on?!"

"I-I thought this would be… helpful, sir!" another employee mumbled.

"How long?!"

"Half an hour, the amount of time you're always late, sir," a man eventually answered him. "We do know that hacking into our database is a serious crime, but given the circumstances, I decided we should let the hacker deliver us all of the information they wish to deliver. This is a historical chance, sir, and I thought you, of all people, would have been capable to realize this. Detective L also agreed we should take advantage of this golden opportunity."

"Aizawa…" his superior growled. "Are you defying me?! Do you deliberately choose to listen to a criminal sending you their personal notes?! What are these? A list of random events! We need real clues – names, witnesses, security cameras tape, not this bullshit!"

The man was holding another stack of papers. "Actually, sir, you may consider turning in your badge. You are being accused of collaborating with a criminal. If Satori Yukimura is found guilty, you will also be investigating for aiding and protecting him. Until then, sir, you will be suspended."

"What, just like that?! What evidence do you have against me?!" Kitamura raised his voice, but Aizawa kept his calm. His colleagues followed his example.

"Your name is specifically mentioned several times. Until these declarations are being verified, it is best for you to go on a short vacation, although on the territory of our country only."

At the same time, the last sheet was being printed.

"Aizawa? I think this comes from our hacker's employer."

Ignoring Kitamura's poor anger management, Aizawa turned to his colleague who handed him the paper. He began reading out loud.

"It reads, _'To the NPA and L, you have failed miserably at assuring the security and safety of the people. However, as you will discover very soon, it was not your fault entirely. I have decided to send you these reports on your fellow officers that had been bribed and involved themselves into illegal and harmful actions. As the only survivor of my family, I remember clearly when my father and I asked for protection as key witnesses in at least two cases of murder – that of my mother, followed shortly by one of my father's employees – as well as a case of robbery. It is rather amusing and ironic how you investigated my father instead. To this day, I applaud the sense of humor of Koreyoshi Kitamura, who ordered Soichiro Yagami to deal with us as quickly as possible.'_ " Aizawa stopped to think for a moment. "Does anyone recall this, or anything similar?"

His colleagues shrugged. Nobody had any idea.

"Chief, do you remember anything?" Aizawa asked through a microphone. The connection with L's computer was still active.

 _'We will need to go over the files. I can't remember anything precisely, but I think there were two unresolved murders one or two years ago,'_ Yagami confirmed. _'There was a woman disappearing at sea. I think her driver was killed shortly after, before we could question him.'_

"Then… is it true? Are there corrupted people among us helping criminals get away with it?!" Matsuda asked, tears blurring his vision. "No wonder someone is ready to go this far just to put a spotlight on them!"

"Don't forget hacking is against the law, Matsuda," Aizawa warned him before he went on. "It continues, _'I hold no grudges against those following orders.'_ "

A collective sigh could be heard in the office.

" _'However, all of those who had contributed to the death of my father and had hid the criminal of my mother are going to pay. When the police can no longer do its job, we, the citizens, are left to survive on our own. Please trust me when I write that I will be the next unsolved murder case, unless I take this matter into my own hands, so I wish to ask you two things. First of all, I wish that you will investigate every single piece of information sent to you by my associate. Also, I am warning you and kindly advising you to stay out of my way. Let me handle the underworld, while you do your job right this time. P.S.: Detective L, why haven't you considered tracking down real criminals, like Rod Ross, Ivan Frost, The Snake and others?'_ That's all it says…"

"Is that all? …Wait, is that a threat? Where they say we should stay out of the way… Is it from Kira?!" But Matsuda's enthusiasm deflated in a second.

L had turned on the microphone by pressing the red button on the side. "I doubt it… This is not Kira, but the successor of someone. If I were to guess, I would bet on the Dragon."

Yagami, who had not responded to the NPA's early alarm that morning, was still with L. "What are those names that they mention?"

"Aliases… These are the _'stage names'_ of mafia heads that they use to communicate with their subordinates or with each other. Using their real names was risky before, but now that Kira had surfaced, it is even more of a threat to their own personal security. Therefore, they use shorts of their real names, odd nicknames inspired by characters in movies or legends, symbols and so on. For the past three to four decades, the black market, also known as the _'underworld'_ has been controlled by mainly three people: Rod Ross somewhere in North America, Ivan Frost in Eastern Europe and Northern Asia, and the Dragon in Southern Europe and Asia. My guess is that the one sending these files is either the blood successor or a protégé and student of the Dragon, who has died sometime between November and February. The Snake had also disappeared from all radars sometime in December."

 _'Should I email you the files, L?'_ Aizawa asked through the computer.

"No. Bring them with you when you return to our headquarters. You may leave copies of those containing information about police officers only." He released the button which closed the microphone. "What seems peculiar is that last phrase of our witness… It seems they do not consider Kira a _'real criminal'_. So, although our witness is not Kira, they must have a similar system of beliefs. In the best case, they are a supporter of Kira. In the worst, they are indifferent towards Kira, enough to disregard the threat that he poses to most members of the underworld."

The detective leaned towards the table and picked up his cup of overly sweet peaches and mango tea. He took a sip and stared into his cup for a long moment.

"You said you do remember something about two unsolved murders, correct, Chief?" L looked up at Yagami. "I want to see those files."

A chill ran down the Chief's spine as he remembered the murders even better. One of the witnesses was a girl that his son had been dating back then. They had both been involved in a series of coincidences and it seemed they were the wrong people at the wrong time, constantly. "Alright. I will find the files in the archive myself."

"If I am right… there may be a way in which the witness and Kira are connected," L mumbled right before sipping some more tea from his cup. He began thinking about the witness – the person had to be fairly young, though he couldn't decide yet if they too were impulsive and childish, or if they were exposing themselves on purpose.

It was quite rare, but sometimes serial killers with unfinished business would deliberately expose themselves. It was a way of claiming certain crimes as their own, so that a certain someone would realize something. The purpose could be to threaten someone, show off, or prove their worth in front of someone higher on the hierarchic scale.

The exposure was different from the signature. It was more complex, sending a precise message. It could consist in puzzles, like Beyond Birthday used, or it could consist in a certain context or set up, like Kira uses.

"…Unless we can prove the witness had hired a hacker, we can't arrest them. We'll be investigating a new series of crimes sooner than I'd thought," he mumbled to himself.

By noon, a dozen of corrupted officers had turned themselves in after receiving threats via their fax or printers, either at home or at work. As soon as the first shift ended, the first murder appeared.

The detective was eating vanilla ice cream drowned in chocolate sauce and three types of chocolate chips. He was watching the security footage that showed one of the officers taking their personal car at the end of their shift. At 4:03 PM, the man left his office. At 4:14, he was leaving the building. He had used the time to change into civilian clothes. At 4:16, he was leaving the parking lot. At 4:30, a traffic camera showed him waiting at a red light. At 4:31, his car exploded.

"Such unlucky February the 13th…" Kira mumbled to himself as he saw the report on the news. He was helping his mother by setting the table for three again. His father had called to say he won't be home in time for dinner, as usual.

His mother turned around. "Did you say anything, dear?"

"Yes. It was a strange coincidence, don't you think? It's February 13th today. For the westerners, it's one of the unluckiest numbers."

The woman stopped for a moment to watch the screen. "My…! Poor man. He must have been burned alive. Such terrible fate!"

"Indeed, but I wouldn't pity him. They're not saying this on TV because it would stain their image, but the police had just found out about him and a few others that they've been bribed. They helped criminals and thieves by destroying evidence. People died because of his greed, you know? So, he kind of got what he deserved… That's what I think, anyway."

Shaking her head, his mother sighed. "He should have spent his life in prison if he helped criminals escape, but dying this way? I think it was too much."

"Maybe," Light shrugged. "Did you call Sayu? When is she coming home?" His sister was off to help a friend choose between two pairs of shoes. Actually, that was most likely an excuse so they could hang out at the mall for seven hours.

"I haven't yet. Why don't you call your sister? Leave the rest to me." The woman smiled softly, watching her son as he nodded and took a few steps towards the living room.

He sat on the couch, watching the rest of the news report as he called Sayu to remind her of the time. Light couldn't help but wonder if Caterina was doing the right thing. His father had already told him about the hacking and about the message of a witness in two murder cases left unsolved.

If she would have asked, Light would have told her to act fast and use the advantage she had to the fullest. This way, neither Frost, nor the officers would have know what hit them – or that they had been targeted in the first place.

However, Caterina didn't seem very fond of this technique. Rather, she was coming out in the open with her own black list, declaring the hunting season open. This gave Frost a chance to prepare himself, come up with a plan and even think of a counter-attack. It was more glorious, but far riskier. Also, by addressing L directly, she made sure to have his full attention on her.

In his mind, Caterina had an Ace up her sleeve – one or more, actually. She must have found a way to contact her father's people, so it was only a matter of time until the world would receive another hot warning.

What Light didn't know was how right he was.

* * *

 _ **Author's Notes:**_

 _Chapter proofread by my beta, **AbandonedSock.**_

 _So... Caterina did a thing. Is it good? Is it bad? Is it a complete disaster? I want to know what you think._

 _Also, than you for your support and know that I'm reading every review and it makes my day!_


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